Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. anything or anyone old that has been given a new lease of life, esp. someone who has been retrained for a new job.

1941		Salt 22 Dec. 36/2: Characteristically the Australians call a small reconnaissance tank a "dingo," and a 1914–1918 soldier enlisted a second time a ‘retread’ .
1944		P. Kendall Dict. Service Sl. n.p.: old soldier [...] retread.
1945		Baker Aus. Lang. 152: A soldier of the 1914–18 war who has joined up again is a retread.
1953		Economist 17 Oct. 178/2: The pro-Eisenhower Chicago Daily News called his appointees ‘Governor Stratton’s team of Republican retreads’.
1957		(con. 1944) A. Myrer Big War 272: A beat-up old retread.
1962		L. Deighton Ipcress File (1964) 107: Standing around giving each other the old stuff about retreads, P.T.A. meetings and where to go for a good divorce.
1970		New Yorker 27 June 52: The foundations, busy handing money out to retreads and the moribund, have been silent.
1989		Sydney Morn. Herald 3 Apr. 8S/5: [of a musical revival] This is a fair retread.
1999		P. Temple Black Tide (2012) [ebook] [of a racehorse] First thing to do is get some daylight between McCurdie and the horse. Turns up with another retread no one’s goin to take a big note on him.
2003		McGill Reed Dict. of N.Z. Sl. 172: retread Worker back from retirement, like a tyre that has been retreaded for another working life. ANZ mid C20.

2. attrib. use of sense 1.

1979		E. Torres After Hours 33: I sound like a retread hoodlum on the overdue list.
2012		R.A. Dickey Wherever I Wind Up 290: People keep waiting for me to revert to my retread form, for the league to catch up to me.

3. an ex-lover, someone who has recently been divorced.

1970

D. Ponicsan Last Detail 112: She has the hots for you—if you want Billy’s retreads.

4. a retired schoolteacher who is still teaching.

1984

Partridge DSUE (8th edn) 972/1: since ca. 1950.