Science definition for the word work - Word и Excel - помощь в работе с программами

Presentation on theme: «1. What is work? In science, the word work has a different meaning than you may be familiar with. The scientific definition of work is: using a force.»— Presentation transcript:

1

1

2

What is work? In science, the word work has a different meaning than you may be familiar with. The scientific definition of work is: using a force to move an object a distance (when both the force and the motion of the object are in the same direction.) 2

3

Work or Not? According to the scientific definition, what is work and what is not? A teacher lecturing to her class? A mouse pushing a piece of cheese with its nose across the floor? 3

4

4

5

What’s work? For work to be done on an object, the object must move in the same direction as the force. So ….2 things are required…  Object must MOVE when force is applied  The direction of the motion must be the same as the force. 5

6

Imagine that you are late for school and are moving quickly to your locker carrying a heavy book bag. Because you are making the book bag move, are you doing work on it? NO – For work to be done on an object, the object must move in the SAME direction as the force. You are applying a force to hold it up, but the bag is moving forward. 6

7

7

8

What’s work? A scientist delivers a speech to an audience of his peers. A mother picks up her baby. A mother carries her baby from room to room. A body builder lifts 350 pounds above his head. A woman carries a 20 kg grocery bag to her car? 8

9

What’s work? A scientist delivers a speech to an audience of his peers. NO A mother picks up her baby. Yes A mother carries her baby from room to room. NO A body builder lifts 350 pounds above his head. Yes A woman carries a 20 kg grocery bag to her car? NO 9

10

Formula for Work Work = Force x Distance (push or pull) The unit of force is Newtons The unit of distance is meters The unit of work is Newton-meters One Newton-meter is equal to one joule So, the unit of work is a joule 10

11

W=FD ~ Work = Force x Distance Calculate: If a man pushes a concrete block 10 meters with a force of 20 N, how much work has he done? 11

12

W=FD Work = Force x Distance If a man pushes a concrete block 10 meters with a force of 20 N, how much work has he done? W = 20N x 10m = 200 joules 12

13

Power Power is the rate at which work is done or that energy is transferred. It measures how fast work happens – or how quickly energy is transferred. Power = Work * /Time (force x distance) The unit of power is the watt (also joules/second). 13

14

Check for Understanding Two physics students, Ben and Bonnie, are in the weightlifting room. Bonnie lifts the 50 kg barbell over her head (approximately.60 m) 10 times in one minute; Ben lifts the 50 kg barbell the same distance over his head 10 times in 10 seconds. Which student does the most work? Which student delivers the most power? Explain your answers. 14

15

Ben and Bonnie do the same amount of work; they apply the same force to lift the same barbell the same distance above their heads. Yet, Ben is the most powerful since he does the same work in less time. 15

16

What is a Machine? Device or tool that makes work easier A machine makes work easier by changing the size (magnitude) or direction of the force needed What are some machines you use everyday? 16

17

17 Input vs. Output The WORK that you do on the machine is work input. (W = F x D) The FORCE you use on the machine is called input force. The work done by the machine is called work output The FORCE the machine applies is called output force.

18

Mechanical Advantage (MA) (Comparing Forces) MA = output force input force MA tells how many times a machine multiplies force If a machine can increase force more than others, work is generally easier and it has a greater mechanical advantage >1 MA — can help move heavy objects <1 MA — can increase the distance an object moves (like a hammer) 18

19

How Machines Help They don’t increase the amount of work done… Work output can’t be more than work input But, machines allow the force to be applied over a greater distance – which means less force is needed for the same amount of work. Machines make work easier by changing the size or direction (or both) of the input force. 19

20

Mechanical Efficiency (ME) (Comparing Work Output and Input) ME = Work output x 100 Work input The work output of a machine is always less than the input. Work has to overcome friction The less work a machine has to do to overcome friction the greater the ME We multiply Xs 100 because it’s expressed as a percentage. 20

21

Machines can’t be 100% efficient because every machine has moving parts. Moving parts have to use some of the work input to overcome friction. 21

Источник

42 7.1 Work: The Scientific Definition

Summary

Explain how an object must be displaced for a force on it to do work.
Explain how relative directions of force and displacement determine whether the work done is positive, negative, or zero.

What It Means to Do Work

The scientific definition of work differs in some ways from its everyday meaning. Certain things we think of as hard work, such as writing an exam or carrying a heavy load on level ground, are not work as defined by a scientist. The scientific definition of work reveals its relationship to energy—whenever work is done, energy is transferred.

For work, in the scientific sense, to be done, a force must be exerted and there must be displacement in the direction of the force.

Formally, the work done on a system by a constant force is defined to be the product of the component of the force in the direction of motion times the distance through which the force acts. For one-way motion in one dimension, this is expressed in equation form as

where is work, is the displacement of the system, and is the angle between the force vector and the displacement vector as in Figure 1. We can also write this as

To find the work done on a system that undergoes motion that is not one-way or that is in two or three dimensions, we divide the motion into one-way one-dimensional segments and add up the work done over each segment.

Five drawings labeled a through e. In (a), person pushing a lawn mower with a force F. Force is represented by a vector making an angle theta with the horizontal and displacement of the mower is represented by vector d. The component of vector F along vector d is F cosine theta. Work done by the person W is equal to F d cosine theta. (b) A person is standing with a briefcase in his hand. The force F shown by a vector arrow pointing upwards starting from the handle of briefcase and the displacement d is equal to zero. (c) A person is walking holding the briefcase in his hand. Force vector F is in the vertical direction starting from the handle of briefcase and displacement vector d is in horizontal direction starting from the same point as vector F. The angle between F and d theta is equal to 90 degrees. Cosine theta is equal to zero. (d) A briefcase is shown in front of a set of stairs. A vector d starting from the first stair points along the incline of the stair and a force vector F is in vertical direction starting from the same point as vector d. The angle between them is theta. A component of vector F along vector d is F d cosine theta. (e) A briefcase is shown lowered vertically down from an electric generator. The displacement vector d points downwards and force vector F points upwards acting on the briefcase.

Figure 1. Examples of work. (a) The work done by the force F on this lawn mower is Fd cosθ. Note that F cosθ is the component of the force in the direction of motion. (b) A person holding a briefcase does no work on it, because there is no displacement. No energy is transferred to or from the briefcase. (c) The person moving the briefcase horizontally at a constant speed does no work on it, and transfers no energy to it. (d) Work is done on the briefcase by carrying it up stairs at constant speed, because there is necessarily a component of force F in the direction of the motion. Energy is transferred to the briefcase and could in turn be used to do work. (e) When the briefcase is lowered, energy is transferred out of the briefcase and into an electric generator. Here the work done on the briefcase by the generator is negative, removing energy from the briefcase, because F and d are in opposite directions.

To examine what the definition of work means, let us consider the other situations shown in Figure 1. The person holding the briefcase in Figure 1(b) does no work, for example. Here so Why is it you get tired just holding a load? The answer is that your muscles are doing work against one another, but they are doing no work on the system of interest (the “briefcase-Earth system”—see Chapter 7.3 Gravitational Potential Energy for more details). There must be displacement for work to be done, and there must be a component of the force in the direction of the motion. For example, the person carrying the briefcase on level ground in Figure 1(c) does no work on it, because the force is perpendicular to the motion. That is, $boldsymbol{textbf{cos}:90^0 =0},$ and so

In contrast, when a force exerted on the system has a component in the direction of motion, such as in Figure 1(d), work is done—energy is transferred to the briefcase. Finally, in Figure 1(e), energy is transferred from the briefcase to a generator. There are two good ways to interpret this energy transfer. One interpretation is that the briefcase’s weight does work on the generator, giving it energy. The other interpretation is that the generator does negative work on the briefcase, thus removing energy from it. The drawing shows the latter, with the force from the generator upward on the briefcase, and the displacement downward. This makes $boldsymbol{theta=180^0},$ and $boldsymbol{textbf{cos}:180^0=-1};$ therefore, is negative.

Calculating Work

Work and energy have the same units. From the definition of work, we see that those units are force times distance. Thus, in SI units, work and energy are measured in newton-meters. A newton-meter is given the special name joule (J), and $boldsymbol{1textbf{ J}=1textbf{ N}cdotptextbf{ m}=1textbf{ kg}cdotptextbf{m}^2/textbf{s}^2}.$ One joule is not a large amount of energy; it would lift a small 100-gram apple a distance of about 1 meter.

Example 1: Calculating the Work You Do to Push a Lawn Mower Across a Large Lawn

How much work is done on the lawn mower by the person in Figure 1(a) if he exerts a constant force of at an angle $boldsymbol{35^0}$ below the horizontal and pushes the mower on level ground? Convert the amount of work from joules to kilocalories and compare it with this person’s average daily intake of (about ) of food energy. One calorie (1 cal) of heat is the amount required to warm 1 g of water by $boldsymbol{1^0C},$ and is equivalent to while one food calorie (1 kcal) is equivalent to

Strategy

We can solve this problem by substituting the given values into the definition of work done on a system, stated in the equation The force, angle, and displacement are given, so that only the work is unknown.

Solution

The equation for the work is

Substituting the known values gives

$begin{array}{lcl} boldsymbol{W} & = & boldsymbol{(75.0textbf{ N})(25.0textbf{ m}) ;textbf{cos}; (35.0^0)} \ {} & = & boldsymbol{1536textbf{ J}=1.54times10^3textbf{ J}} end{array}.$

Converting the work in joules to kilocalories yields The ratio of the work done to the daily consumption is

$boldsymbol{frac{W}{2400textbf{ kcal}}}$ $boldsymbol{=:1.53times10^{-4}}.$

Discussion

This ratio is a tiny fraction of what the person consumes, but it is typical. Very little of the energy released in the consumption of food is used to do work. Even when we “work” all day long, less than 10% of our food energy intake is used to do work and more than 90% is converted to thermal energy or stored as chemical energy in fat.

Section Summary

Conceptual Questions

1: Give an example of something we think of as work in everyday circumstances that is not work in the scientific sense. Is energy transferred or changed in form in your example? If so, explain how this is accomplished without doing work.

2: Give an example of a situation in which there is a force and a displacement, but the force does no work. Explain why it does no work.

3: Describe a situation in which a force is exerted for a long time but does no work. Explain.

Problems & Exercises

1: How much work does a supermarket checkout attendant do on a can of soup he pushes 0.600 m horizontally with a force of 5.00 N? Express your answer in joules and kilocalories.

2: A 75.0-kg person climbs stairs, gaining 2.50 meters in height. Find the work done to accomplish this task.

3: (a) Calculate the work done on a 1500-kg elevator car by its cable to lift it 40.0 m at constant speed, assuming friction averages 100 N. (b) What is the work done on the lift by the gravitational force in this process? (c) What is the total work done on the lift?

4: Suppose a car travels 108 km at a speed of 30.0 m/s, and uses 2.0 gal of gasoline. Only 30% of the gasoline goes into useful work by the force that keeps the car moving at constant speed despite friction. (See Chapter 7.6 Table 1 for the energy content of gasoline.) (a) What is the magnitude of the force exerted to keep the car moving at constant speed? (b) If the required force is directly proportional to speed, how many gallons will be used to drive 108 km at a speed of 28.0 m/s?

5: Calculate the work done by an 85.0-kg man who pushes a crate 4.00 m up along a ramp that makes an angle of $boldsymbol{20.0^0}$ with the horizontal. (See Figure 2.) He exerts a force of 500 N on the crate parallel to the ramp and moves at a constant speed. Be certain to include the work he does on the crate and on his body to get up the ramp.

A person is pushing a heavy crate up a ramp. The force vector F applied by the person is acting parallel to the ramp.

Figure 2. A man pushes a crate up a ramp.

6: How much work is done by the boy pulling his sister 30.0 m in a wagon as shown in Figure 3? Assume no friction acts on the wagon.

A child is sitting inside a wagon and being pulled by a boy with a force F at an angle thirty degrees upward from the horizontal. F is equal to fifty newtons, the displacement vector d is horizontal in the direction of motion. The magnitude of d is thirty meters.

Figure 3. The boy does work on the system of the wagon and the child when he pulls them as shown.

7: A shopper pushes a grocery cart 20.0 m at constant speed on level ground, against a 35.0 N frictional force. He pushes in a direction $boldsymbol{25.0^0}$ below the horizontal. (a) What is the work done on the cart by friction? (b) What is the work done on the cart by the gravitational force? (c) What is the work done on the cart by the shopper? (d) Find the force the shopper exerts, using energy considerations. (e) What is the total work done on the cart?

8: Suppose the ski patrol lowers a rescue sled and victim, having a total mass of 90.0 kg, down a $boldsymbol{60.0^0}$ slope at constant speed, as shown in Figure 4. The coefficient of friction between the sled and the snow is 0.100. (a) How much work is done by friction as the sled moves 30.0 m along the hill? (b) How much work is done by the rope on the sled in this distance? (c) What is the work done by the gravitational force on the sled? (d) What is the total work done?

A person on a rescue sled is shown being pulled up a slope. The slope makes an angle of sixty degrees from the horizontal. The weight of the person is shown by vector w acting vertically downward. The tension in the rope depicted by vector T is along the incline in the upward direction; vector f depicting frictional force is also acting in the same direction.

Figure 4. A rescue sled and victim are lowered down a steep slope.

Glossary

energy: the ability to do work

work: the transfer of energy by a force that causes an object to be displaced; the product of the component of the force in the direction of the displacement and the magnitude of the displacement

joule: SI unit of work and energy, equal to one newton-meter

Solutions

Problems & Exercises

$boldsymbol{3.00textbf{ J}=7.17times10^{-4}textbf{ kcal}}$

(a) $boldsymbol{5.92times10^5textbf{ J}}$

(b) $boldsymbol{-5.88times10^5textbf{ J}}$

$boldsymbol{3.14times10^3textbf{ J}}$

(a)

(b) 0

(d) 38.6 N

(e) 0

Источник

Learning Objectives

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

Explain how an object must be displaced for a force on it to do work.
Explain how relative directions of force and displacement determine whether the work done is positive, negative, or zero.

What It Means to Do Work

For work, in the scientific sense, to be done, a force must be exerted and there must be motion or displacement in the direction of the force.

Formally, the work done on a system by a constant force is defined to be the product of the component of the force in the direction of motion times the distance through which the force acts. For one-way motion in one dimension, this is expressed in equation form as W = |F| (cosθ) |d|, where W is work, d is the displacement of the system, and θ is the angle between the force vector F and the displacement vector d, as in Figure 1. We can also write this as W = Fd cos θ.

What is Work?

The work done on a system by a constant force is the product of the component of the force in the direction of motion times the distance through which the force acts. For one-way motion in one dimension, this is expressed in equation form as W = Fd cos θ, where W is work, F is the magnitude of the force on the system, d is the magnitude of the displacement of the system, and θ is the angle between the force vector F and the displacement vector d.

Figure 1. examples of work. (a) The work done by the force F on this lawn mower is Fd cos θ. Note that F cos θ is the component of the force in the direction of motion. (b) A person holding a briefcase does no work on it, because there is no motion. No energy is transferred to or from the briefcase. (c) The person moving the briefcase horizontally at a constant speed does no work on it, and transfers no energy to it. (d) Work is done on the briefcase by carrying it up stairs at constant speed, because there is necessarily a component of force F in the direction of the motion. Energy is transferred to the briefcase and could in turn be used to do work. (e) When the briefcase is lowered, energy is transferred out of the briefcase and into an electric generator. Here the work done on the briefcase by the generator is negative, removing energy from the briefcase, because F and d are in opposite directions.

To examine what the definition of work means, let us consider the other situations shown in Figure 1. The person holding the briefcase in Figure 1b does no work, for example. Here d = 0, so W = 0. Why is it you get tired just holding a load? The answer is that your muscles are doing work against one another, but they are doing no work on the system of interest (the “briefcase-Earth system”—see Gravitational Potential Energy for more details). There must be motion for work to be done, and there must be a component of the force in the direction of the motion. For example, the person carrying the briefcase on level ground in Figure 1c does no work on it, because the force is perpendicular to the motion. That is, cos 90º = 0, and so W = 0.

In contrast, when a force exerted on the system has a component in the direction of motion, such as in Figure 1d, work is done—energy is transferred to the briefcase. Finally, in Figure 1e, energy is transferred from the briefcase to a generator. There are two good ways to interpret this energy transfer. One interpretation is that the briefcase’s weight does work on the generator, giving it energy. The other interpretation is that the generator does negative work on the briefcase, thus removing energy from it. The drawing shows the latter, with the force from the generator upward on the briefcase, and the displacement downward. This makes θ = 180º, and cos 180º = −1; therefore, W is negative.

Calculating Work

Work and energy have the same units. From the definition of work, we see that those units are force times distance. Thus, in SI units, work and energy are measured in newton-meters. A newton-meter is given the special name joule (J), and 1J = 1N · m = 1 kg · m²/s². One joule is not a large amount of energy; it would lift a small 100-gram apple a distance of about 1 meter.

Example 1. Calculating the Work You Do to Push a Lawn Mower Across a Large Lawn

How much work is done on the lawn mower by the person in Figure 1a if he exerts a constant force of 75.0 N at an angle 35º below the horizontal and pushes the mower 25.0 m on level ground? Convert the amount of work from joules to kilocalories and compare it with this person’s average daily intake of 10,000 kJ (about 2400 kcal) of food energy. One calorie (1 cal) of heat is the amount required to warm 1 g of water by 1ºC, and is equivalent to 4.184 J, while one food calorie (1 kcal) is equivalent to 4184 J.

Strategy

We can solve this problem by substituting the given values into the definition of work done on a system, stated in the equation W = Fd cos θ. The force, angle, and displacement are given, so that only the work W is unknown.

Solution

The equation for the work is W = Fd cos θ.

Substituting the known values gives

[latex]begin{array}{lll}W&=&(75.0text{ N})(25.0text{ m})cos(35.0^{circ})\text{ }&=&1536text{ J}=1.54times10^3text{ J}end{array}\[/latex]

Converting the work in joules to kilocalories yields W = (1536 J)(1 kcal/4184 J) = 0.367 kcal. The ratio of the work done to the daily consumption is

[latex]displaystylefrac{W}{2400text{ kcal}}=1.53times10^{-4}\[/latex]

Discussion

Section Summary

Work is the transfer of energy by a force acting on an object as it is displaced.

The work W that a force F does on an object is the product of the magnitude F of the force, times the magnitude d of the displacement, times the cosine of the angle θ between them. In symbols, W = Fd cos θ.

The SI unit for work and energy is the joule (J), where 1 J = 1 N ⋅ m = 1 kg ⋅ m²/s².

The work done by a force is zero if the displacement is either zero or perpendicular to the force.

The work done is positive if the force and displacement have the same direction, and negative if they have opposite direction.

Conceptual Questions

Give an example of something we think of as work in everyday circumstances that is not work in the scientific sense. Is energy transferred or changed in form in your example? If so, explain how this is accomplished without doing work.
Give an example of a situation in which there is a force and a displacement, but the force does no work. Explain why it does no work.
Describe a situation in which a force is exerted for a long time but does no work. Explain.

Problems & Exercises

How much work does a supermarket checkout attendant do on a can of soup he pushes 0.600 m horizontally with a force of 5.00 N? Express your answer in joules and kilocalories.
A 75.0-kg person climbs stairs, gaining 2.50 meters in height. Find the work done to accomplish this task.
(a) Calculate the work done on a 1500-kg elevator car by its cable to lift it 40.0 m at constant speed, assuming friction averages 100 N. (b) What is the work done on the lift by the gravitational force in this process? (c) What is the total work done on the lift?
Suppose a car travels 108 km at a speed of 30.0 m/s, and uses 2.0 gal of gasoline. Only 30% of the gasoline goes into useful work by the force that keeps the car moving at constant speed despite friction. (A gallon of gasoline has 1.2 × 10⁸ J.) (a) What is the magnitude of the force exerted to keep the car moving at constant speed? (b) If the required force is directly proportional to speed, how many gallons will be used to drive 108 km at a speed of 28.0 m/s?
Calculate the work done by an 85.0-kg man who pushes a crate 4.00 m up along a ramp that makes an angle of 20.0º with the horizontal. (See Figure 2.) He exerts a force of 500 N on the crate parallel to the ramp and moves at a constant speed. Be certain to include the work he does on the crate and on his body to get up the ramp.

Figure 2. A man pushes a crate up a ramp.
How much work is done by the boy pulling his sister 30.0 m in a wagon as shown in Figure 3? Assume no friction acts on the wagon.

Figure 3. The boy does work on the system of the wagon and the child when he pulls them as shown.
A shopper pushes a grocery cart 20.0 m at constant speed on level ground, against a 35.0 N frictional force. He pushes in a direction 25.0º below the horizontal. (a) What is the work done on the cart by friction? (b) What is the work done on the cart by the gravitational force? (c) What is the work done on the cart by the shopper? (d) Find the force the shopper exerts, using energy considerations. (e) What is the total work done on the cart?
Suppose the ski patrol lowers a rescue sled and victim, having a total mass of 90.0 kg, down a 60.0º slope at constant speed, as shown in Figure 4. The coefficient of friction between the sled and the snow is 0.100. (a) How much work is done by friction as the sled moves 30.0 m along the hill? (b) How much work is done by the rope on the sled in this distance? (c) What is the work done by the gravitational force on the sled? (d) What is the total work done?

Figure 4. A rescue sled and victim are lowered down a steep slope.

Glossary

energy: the ability to do work

work: the transfer of energy by a force that causes an object to be displaced; the product of the component of the force in the direction of the displacement and the magnitude of the displacement

joule: SI unit of work and energy, equal to one newton-meter

Selected Solutions to Problems & Exercises

1. 3.00 J = 7.17 × 10⁻⁴ kcal

3. (a) 5.92 × 10⁵ J; (b) −5.88 × 10⁵ J; (c) The net force is zero.

5. 3.14 × 10³ J

7. (a) −700 J; (b) 0; (c) 700 J; (d) 38.6 N; (e) 0

Источник

Work Definition in Chemistry

The work required to carry a ball up a hill is the energy needed to act against the force of gravity.
Michael Blann / Getty Images

The word «work» means different things in different contexts. In science, it is a thermodynamic concept. The SI unit for work is the joule. Physicists and chemists, in particular, view work in relation to energy:

Work is the energy required to move an object against a force. In fact, one definition of energy is the capacity to do work. There are many different kinds of work. Examples include:

Electrical work
Work against gravity
Work against a magnetic field
Mechanical work

Key Takeaways: Work Definition in Science

In physical science, such as physics and chemistry, work is force multiplied by distance.
Work occurs if there is movement in the direction of the force.
The SI unit of work is the joule (J). This is the work expended by a force of one newton (N) over a displacement of one meter (m).

Mechanical Work

Mechanical work is the type of work most commonly dealt with in physics and chemistry. It includes work moving against gravity (e.g., up an elevator) or any opposing force. Work is equal to the force times the distance the object moves:

w = F*d

where w is work, F is the opposing force, and d is the distance

This equation may also be written as:

w = m*a*d

where a is the acceleration

PV Work

Another common type of work is pressure-volume work. This is work done by frictionless pistons and ideal gases. The equation to calculate the expansion or compression of a gas is:

w = -PΔV

where w is work, P is pressure, and ΔV is the change in volume

Sign Convention for Work

Note that equations for work employ the following sign convention:

Work performed by the system on the surroundings has a negative sign.
Heat flow from the system into the surroundings has a negative sign.

Источник

Top Definitions
Synonyms
Quiz
Related Content
When To Use
Examples
British
Scientific
Cultural
Idioms And Phrases

This shows grade level based on the word’s complexity.

noun

exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something; labor; toil.

productive or operative activity.

employment, as in some form of industry, especially as a means of earning one’s livelihood: to look for work.

one’s place of employment: Don’t phone him at work.

something on which exertion or labor is expended; a task or undertaking: The students finished their work in class.

materials, things, etc., on which one is working or is to work.

the result of exertion, labor, or activity; a deed or performance.

a product of exertion, labor, or activity: musical works.

Often works. an engineering structure, as a building or bridge.

a building, wall, trench, or the like, constructed or made as a means of fortification.

works,

(used with a singular or plural verb) a place or establishment for manufacturing (often used in combination): ironworks.
the working parts of a machine: the works of a watch.
Theology. righteous deeds.

Physics. force times the distance through which it acts; specifically, the transference of energy equal to the product of the component of a force that acts in the direction of the motion of the point of application of the force and the distance through which the point of application moves.

the works, Informal.

everything; all related items or matters: a hamburger with the works.
harsh or cruel treatment: to give someone the works.

adjective

of, for, or concerning work: work clothes.

verb (used without object), worked or (Archaic) wrought;working.

to be employed, especially as a means of earning one’s livelihood: He hasn’t worked for six weeks.

to be in operation, as a machine: The water should not be disconnected while the pump is working.

to act or operate effectively: We all agree that this plan works.

to attain a specified condition, as by repeated movement: The nails worked loose.

to have an effect or influence, as on a person or on the mind or feelings of a person.

to move in agitation, as the features under strong emotion.

to make way with effort or under stress: The ship works to windward.

Nautical. to give slightly at the joints, as a vessel under strain at sea.

Machinery. to move improperly, as from defective fitting of parts or from wear.

to undergo treatment by labor in a given way: This dough works slowly.

to ferment, as a liquid.

verb (used with object), worked or ( Archaic except for 29, 31, 34 ) wrought;working.

to use or manage (an apparatus, contrivance, etc.): It is easy to work the camera in this mobile device.She can work many power tools.

to bring about (any result) by or as by work or effort: to work a change.

to manipulate or treat by labor: to work butter.

to put into effective operation.

to operate (a mine, farm, etc.) for productive purposes: to work a coal mine.

to carry on operations in (a district or region).

to make, fashion, or execute by work.

to achieve or win by work or effort: to work one’s passage.

to keep (a person, a horse, etc.) at work: She works her employees hard.

to cause a strong emotion in: to work a crowd into a frenzy.

to influence or persuade, especially insidiously: to work other people to one’s will.

Informal. to exploit (someone or something) to one’s advantage: See if you can work your uncle for a new car. He worked his charm in landing a new job.

to make or decorate by needlework or embroidery: She worked a needlepoint cushion.

to cause fermentation in.

Verb Phrases

work in / into

to bring or put in; add, merge, or blend: The tailor worked in the patch skillfully. Work the cream into the hands until it is completely absorbed.
to arrange a time or employment for: The dentist was very busy, but said she would be able to work me in late in the afternoon. They worked him into the new operation.

work off,

to lose or dispose of, as by exercise or labor: We decided to work off the effects of a heavy supper by walking for an hour.
to pay or fulfill by working: He worked off his debt by doing odd jobs.

work on / upon to exercise influence on; persuade; affect: I’ll work on her, and maybe she’ll change her mind.

work out,

to bring about by work, effort, or action.
to solve, as a problem.
to arrive at by or as by calculation.
to pay (a debt) by working instead of paying money.
to exhaust, as a mine.
to issue in a result.
to evolve; elaborate.
to amount to (a total or specified figure); add up (to): The total works out to 176.
to prove effective or successful: Their marriage just didn’t work out.
to practice, exercise, or train, especially in order to become proficient in an athletic sport: The boxers are working out at the gym tonight.

work over,

to study or examine thoroughly: For my term paper I worked over 30 volumes of Roman history.
Informal. to beat unsparingly, especially in order to obtain something or out of revenge: They threatened to work him over until he talked.

work through, to deal with successfully; come to terms with: to work through one’s feelings of guilt.

work up,

to move or stir the feelings; excite.
to prepare; elaborate: Work up some plans.
to increase in efficiency or skill: He worked up his typing speed to 70 words a minute.

work up to, rise to a higher position; advance: He worked up to the presidency.

VIDEO FOR WORK

Did You Know The Names Of These Unique Careers?

Remember when you were little and everyone kept asking, “What do you wanna be when you grow up?” Well, we found some of the most unique career names to help you decide.

Idioms about work

at work,

working, as at one’s job: He’s at work on a new novel.
in action or operation: to see the machines at work.

gum up the works, Slang. to spoil something, as through blundering or stupidity: The surprise party was all arranged, but her little brother gummed up the works and told her.

in the works, in preparation or being planned: A musical version of the book is in the works.

make short work of, to finish or dispose of quickly: We made short work of the chocolate layer cake.

out of work, unemployed; jobless: Many people in the area were out of work.

shoot the works, Slang. to spend all one’s resources: Let’s shoot the works and order the crêpes suzette.

work it, Informal.

to arrange something: I’ll try to work it so that we can all travel together.
to show off one’s body or clothing to best effect, often through movement or posing: The models were working it on the runway.Work it on the dance floor, baby!

Origin of work

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English worke, Old English worc, replacing Middle English werk(e), Old English weorc, cognate with Old Frisian, Old Saxon werk, Old High German werah, werc (German Werk ), Old Norse verk, Greek érgon; (verb) Middle English worken, derivative of the noun, replacing Middle English wyrchen, Old English wyrcean; cognate with German wirken, Old Norse verkja, Gothic waurkjan

OTHER WORDS FROM work

nonwork, nounpre·work, verb, pre·worked or pre·wrought, pre·work·ing.prework, noun, adjective

Words nearby work

word wrap, word wrapping, wordy, wore, wore-out, work, workable, workaday, workaholic, workaround, work back

Other definitions for work (2 of 2)

noun

Henry Clay, 1832–84, U.S. songwriter.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

WHEN TO USE

What are other ways to say work?

The noun work refers to the exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something. When should you use work instead of drudgery, labor, or toil? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Words related to work

effort, endeavor, industry, job, performance, production, struggle, task, trial, activity, art, duty, employment, office, practice, responsibility, skill, thing, trade, act

How to use work in a sentence

I worked very loyally for him to do everything I could for him.
Both are recovering well after their surgeries and are already back to work.
The NBCU spokesperson said the company would work with each advertiser to decide how the data would be used and managed.
It works with the full-sized Smart Keyboard and the new Logitech keyboards.

At Fortune, we’ve worked to make business better since our founding 90 years ago.
If anything the work the two cops and the maintenance guy were doing deserves more respect and probably helped a lot more people.
Why, some might be asking, am I being so harsh on their work so soon after they died?
“I love my job and I love my city and I am committed to the work here,” he said in a statement.
So it might be me projecting my desires onto Archer to want to just get away from work for a few weeks.
To make it work almost everything else about these shows has to seem factual which is why many look like a weird Celebrity Sims.
Sleek finds it far harder work than fortune-making; but he pursues his Will-o’-the-Wisp with untiring energy.
With him one is at high pressure all the time, and I have gained a good many more ideas from him than I can work up in a hurry.
In fact, except for Ramona’s help, it would have been a question whether even Alessandro could have made Baba work in harness.
The sad end of the mission to King M’Bongo has been narrated in the body of this work.
Entrez donc, ’tis the work of one of your compatriots; and here, though a heretic, you may consider yourself on English ground.

British Dictionary definitions for work

noun

physical or mental effort directed towards doing or making something

paid employment at a job or a trade, occupation, or profession

a duty, task, or undertaking

something done, made, etc, as a result of effort or exertiona work of art

materials or tasks on which to expend effort or exertion

the place, office, etc, where a person is employed

any piece of material that is undergoing a manufacturing operation or process; workpiece

decoration or ornamentation, esp of a specified kind
(in combination)wirework; woolwork

an engineering structure such as a bridge, building, etc

physics the transfer of energy expressed as the product of a force and the distance through which its point of application moves in the direction of the forceAbbreviation: W, w

a structure, wall, etc, built or used as part of a fortification system

at work

at one’s job or place of employment
in action; operating

make short work of informal to handle or dispose of very quickly

(modifier) of, relating to, or used for workwork clothes; a work permit

verb

(intr) to exert effort in order to do, make, or perform something

(intr) to be employed

(tr) to carry on operations, activity, etc, in (a place or area)that salesman works the southern region

(tr) to cause to labour or toilhe works his men hard

to operate or cause to operate, esp properly or effectivelyto work a lathe; that clock doesn’t work

(tr) to till or cultivate (land)

to handle or manipulate or be handled or manipulatedto work dough

to shape, form, or process or be shaped, formed, or processedto work copper

to reach or cause to reach a specific condition, esp graduallythe rope worked loose

(tr) mainly US and Canadian to solve (a mathematical problem)

(intr) to move in agitationhis face worked with anger

(tr often foll by up) to provoke or arouseto work someone into a frenzy

(tr) to effect or accomplishto work one’s revenge

to make (one’s way) with efforthe worked his way through the crowd

(tr) to make or decorate by hand in embroidery, tapestry, etcshe was working a sampler

(intr) (of a mechanism) to move in a loose or otherwise imperfect fashion

(intr) (of liquids) to ferment, as in brewing

(tr) informal to manipulate or exploit to one’s own advantage

(tr) slang to cheat or swindle

Derived forms of work

workless, adjectiveworklessness, noun

Word Origin for work

Old English weorc (n), wircan, wyrcan (vb); related to Old High German wurchen, German wirken, Old Norse yrkja, Gothic waurkjan

Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for work

The transfer of energy from one object to another, especially in order to make the second object move in a certain direction. Work is equal to the amount of force multiplied by the distance over which it is applied. If a force of 10 newtons, for example, is applied over a distance of 3 meters, the work is equal to 30 newtons per meter, or 30 joules. The unit for measuring work is the same as that for energy in any system of units, since work is simply a transfer of energy. Compare energy power.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Cultural definitions for work

In physics, the product of a force applied, and the distance through which that force acts.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with work

In addition to the idioms beginning with work

work both sides of the street
worked up, be
work in
work it
work like a beaver
work like a charm
work off
work on
work one’s fingers to the bone
work one’s way
work out
work over
work up
work wonders

also see:

all in a day’s work
all work and no play
at work
busy work
dirty work
get down to (work)
good works
gum up (the works)
have one’s work cut out
in the works
make short work of
many hands make light work
out of work
shoot the works
the works
turn (work) out all right

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

Источник

work

(wûrk)

a. Physical or mental effort or activity directed toward the production or accomplishment of something: Cleaning the basement was a lot of work.

b. Such effort or activity by which one makes a living; employment: looking for work.

c. A trade, profession, or other means of livelihood: His work is fixing cars.

a. The part of a day devoted to an occupation or undertaking: met her after work.

b. One’s place of employment: Should I call you at home or at work?

a. Something that one is doing, making, or performing, especially as an occupation or undertaking; a duty or task: begin the day’s work.

b. An amount of such activity either done or required: a week’s work.

c. The action or effect of an agency: The antibiotic seems to be doing its work.

a. Something that has been produced or accomplished through the effort, activity, or agency of a person or thing: This scheme was the work of a criminal mastermind. Erosion is the work of wind, water, and time.

b. An act; a deed: «I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity» (Ecclesiastes 1:14).

c. An artistic creation, such as a painting, sculpture, or literary or musical composition, or a creative result of other human activity: an early work of Matisse; a scholarly work of great importance.

d. works The output of a writer, artist, or composer considered or collected as a whole: the works of Bach.

a. works Engineering structures, such as bridges or dams.

b. A fortified structure, such as a trench or fortress.

a. Needlework, weaving, lacemaking, or a similar textile art.

b. A piece of such textile art.

7. A material or piece of material being processed in a machine during manufacture: work to be turned in the lathe.

8. works(used with a sing. or pl. verb) A factory, plant, or similar building or complex of buildings where a specific type of business or industry is carried on. Often used in combination: a steelworks.

9. works Internal mechanism: the works of a watch.

10. The manner, style, or quality of working or treatment; workmanship.

11. Abbr. w Physics The transfer of energy from one physical system to another, especially the application of a force to move a body in a certain direction. It is calculated as the product of the force and the distance over which it is applied and is expressed in joules, ergs, and foot-pounds.

12. works Moral or righteous acts or deeds: salvation by faith rather than works.

13. works

a. Informal The full range of possibilities; everything. Used with the: ordered a pizza with the works.

b. Slang A thorough beating or other severe treatment. Used with the: took him outside and gave him the works.

adj.

Of, relating to, designed for, or engaged in work.

v. worked also wrought (rôt), work·ing, works

v.intr.

1. To exert oneself physically or mentally in order to do, make, or accomplish something.

2. To be employed; have a job.

a. To function; operate: How does this latch work?

b. To function or operate in the desired or required way: The telephone hasn’t worked since the thunderstorm.

a. To have a given effect or outcome: Our friendship works best when we speak our minds.

b. To have the desired effect or outcome; prove successful: This recipe seems to work.

5. To exert an influence. Used with on or upon: worked on her to join the group.

6. To arrive at a specified condition through gradual or repeated movement: The stitches worked loose.

7. To proceed or progress slowly and laboriously: worked through the underbrush; worked through my problems in therapy.

8. To move in an agitated manner, as with emotion: Her mouth worked with fear.

9. To behave in a specified way when handled or processed: Not all metals work easily.

10. To ferment.

11. Nautical

a. To strain in heavy seas so that the joints give slightly and the fastenings become slack. Used of a boat or ship.

b. To sail against the wind.

12. To undergo small motions that result in friction and wear: The gears work against each other.

v.tr.

1. To cause or effect; bring about: working miracles.

2. To cause to operate or function; actuate, use, or manage: worked the controls; can work a lathe.

3. To shape or forge: «Each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor» (Edgar Allan Poe).

4. To make or decorate by needlework: work a sampler.

5. To solve (a problem) by calculation and reasoning.

6. To knead, stir, or otherwise manipulate in preparation: Work the dough before shaping it.

7. To bring to a specified condition by gradual or repeated effort or work: finally worked the window open; worked the slaves to death.

8. To make, achieve, or pay for by work or effort: worked her way to the top; worked his passage on the ship.

9. Informal To arrange or contrive. Often used with it: worked it so that her weekends are free.

10. To make productive; cultivate: work a farm.

11. To cause to work: works his laborers hard.

12. To excite or provoke: worked the mob into a frenzy.

13. Informal

a. To gratify, cajole, or enchant artfully, especially for the purpose of influencing: The politician worked the crowd. The comedian worked the room with flawless rhythm.

b. To use or manipulate to one’s own advantage; exploit: learned how to work the system; worked his relatives for sympathy.

14. To carry on an operation or function in or through: the agent who works that area; working the phones for donations.

15. To ferment (liquor, for example).

Phrasal Verbs:

work in

1. To insert or introduce: worked in a request for money.

2. To make an opening for, as in a schedule: said the doctor would try to work her in.

3. To cause to be inserted by repeated or continuous effort.

work into

1. To insert or introduce into: worked some childhood memories into his novel.

2. To make an opening for (someone or something) in: worked a few field trips into the semester’s calendar.

3. To place or insert in by repeated or continuous effort: worked the pick into the lock.

work off

To get rid of by work or effort: work off extra pounds; work off a debt.

work out

1. To accomplish by work or effort: worked out a compromise.

2. To find a solution for; solve: worked out the equations; worked out their personal differences.

3. To formulate or develop: work out a plan.

4. To discharge (an obligation or debt) with labor in place of money.

5. To prove successful, effective, or satisfactory: The new strategy may not work out.

6. To have a specified result: The ratio works out to an odd number. It worked out that everyone left on the same train.

7. To engage in strenuous exercise for physical conditioning.

8. To exhaust (a mine, for example).

work over

1. To do for a second time; rework.

2. Slang To inflict severe physical damage on; beat up.

work up

1. To arouse the emotions of; excite.

a. To increase one’s skill, responsibility, efficiency, or status through work: worked up to 30 sit-ups a day; worked up to store manager.

b. To intensify gradually: The film works up to a thrilling climax.

3. To develop or produce by mental or physical effort: worked up a patient profile; worked up an appetite.

Idioms:

at work

1. Engaged in labor; working: at work on a new project.

2. In operation: inflationary forces at work in the economy.

in the works

In preparation; under development: has a novel in the works.

out of work

Without a job; unemployed.

put in work

To perform labor or duties, as on a specified project: put in work on the plastering.

work both sides of the street

To engage in double-dealing; be duplicitous.

work like a charm

To function very well or have a very good effect or outcome.

work (one’s) fingers to the bone

To labor extremely hard; toil or travail.

Synonyms: work, labor, toil¹, drudgery, travail
These nouns refer to physical or mental effort expended to produce or accomplish something. Work is the most widely applicable: hard work in the fields; did some work around the house on weekends; a first draft that still needs work.
Labor usually implies human work, especially of a hard physical or intellectual nature: a construction job that involves heavy labor.«All scholarly work builds on the cumulative labors of others» (Jerome Karabel).
Toil applies principally to strenuous, fatiguing labor: «a spirited woman of intellect condemned to farmhouse toil» (Cynthia Ozick).
Drudgery suggests dull, wearisome, or monotonous work: «the drudgery of penning definitions and marking quotations for transcription» (Thomas Macaulay).
Travail connotes arduous work involving pain or suffering: «prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth» (Henry Beston).

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

work

(wɜːk)

1. physical or mental effort directed towards doing or making something

2. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) paid employment at a job or a trade, occupation, or profession

3. a duty, task, or undertaking

4. (Art Terms) something done, made, etc, as a result of effort or exertion: a work of art.

5. materials or tasks on which to expend effort or exertion

7. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) the place, office, etc, where a person is employed

8. (Mechanical Engineering) any piece of material that is undergoing a manufacturing operation or process; workpiece

9. (Art Terms)

a. decoration or ornamentation, esp of a specified kind

b. (in combination): wirework; woolwork.

10. (General Engineering) an engineering structure such as a bridge, building, etc

11. (General Physics) physics the transfer of energy expressed as the product of a force and the distance through which its point of application moves in the direction of the force. Abbreviation: W or w

12. (Fortifications) a structure, wall, etc, built or used as part of a fortification system

13. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) at one’s job or place of employment

14. in action; operating

15. make short work of informal to handle or dispose of very quickly

16. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) (modifier) of, relating to, or used for work: work clothes; a work permit.

17. (intr) to exert effort in order to do, make, or perform something

18. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) (intr) to be employed

19. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) (tr) to carry on operations, activity, etc, in (a place or area): that salesman works the southern region.

20. (Industrial Relations & HR Terms) (tr) to cause to labour or toil: he works his men hard.

21. to operate or cause to operate, esp properly or effectively: to work a lathe; that clock doesn’t work.

22. (Agriculture) (tr) to till or cultivate (land)

23. to handle or manipulate or be handled or manipulated: to work dough.

24. to shape, form, or process or be shaped, formed, or processed: to work copper.

25. to reach or cause to reach a specific condition, esp gradually: the rope worked loose.

26. (Mathematics) (tr) chiefly US and Canadian to solve (a mathematical problem)

27. (intr) to move in agitation: his face worked with anger.

28. (often foll by: up) to provoke or arouse: to work someone into a frenzy.

29. (tr) to effect or accomplish: to work one’s revenge.

30. to make (one’s way) with effort: he worked his way through the crowd.

31. (Knitting & Sewing) (tr) to make or decorate by hand in embroidery, tapestry, etc: she was working a sampler.

32. (Mechanical Engineering) (intr) (of a mechanism) to move in a loose or otherwise imperfect fashion

33. (Brewing) (intr) (of liquids) to ferment, as in brewing

34. (tr) informal to manipulate or exploit to one’s own advantage

35. (tr) slang to cheat or swindle

[Old English weorc (n), wircan, wyrcan (vb); related to Old High German wurchen, German wirken, Old Norse yrkja, Gothic waurkjan]

ˈworkless adj

ˈworklessness n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

work

(wɜrk)

n., adj., v. worked (Archaic except in some senses, esp. 35,37,40 ) wrought; working. n.

1. exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something; labor; toil.

2. something on which exertion or labor is expended; a task or undertaking.

3. productive or operative activity, esp. employment to earn one’s living: to look for work.

4. one’s place of employment: Don’t phone me at work.

5. materials, things, etc., on which one is working or is to work.

6. the result of exertion, labor, or activity; a deed, performance, or product.

7. an engineering structure, as a building or bridge.

8. a building, wall, trench, or the like, constructed or made as a means of fortification.

9. works,

a. (used with a sing. or pl. v.) a place or establishment for manufacturing (often used in combination): ironworks.

b. the working parts of a machine: the works of a watch.

c. Theol. righteous deeds.

10. Physics. the transfer of energy, as measured by the scalar product of a force and the distance through which it acts.

11. the works,

a. everything; all related items or matters: a hamburger with the works.

b. harsh or cruel treatment.

adj.

12. of, for, or concerning work: work clothes.

v.i.

13. to do work; labor.

14. to be employed, esp. as a means of earning one’s livelihood.

15. to be in operation; be functional, as a machine or system: The elevators are working again.

16. to act or operate effectively: This plan works.

17. to attain a specified condition, as by repeated movement: The nails worked loose.

18. to have an effect or influence, as on a person or on a person’s mind or feelings.

19. to move in agitation, as the features under strong emotion.

20. to make way with effort or under stress: The ship works to windward.

21. to ferment, as a liquid.

22. Naut. to give slightly at the joints, as a vessel under strain at sea.

v.t.

23. to use, manage, or operate (an apparatus, contrivance, etc.).

24. to bring about (any result) by or as if by work or effort: to work a change.

25. to manipulate or treat by labor: to work butter.

26. to put into effective operation.

27. to make (a mine, farm, etc.) productive.

28. to carry on operations or activity in (a district or region): That salesman works the Northeast.

29. to make, fashion, or execute by work.

30. to achieve or win by work or effort.

31. to keep at work: to work one’s employees hard.

32. to solve (a puzzle or arithmetic problem).

33. to cause a strong emotion in: to work a crowd into a frenzy.

34. to influence or persuade, esp. insidiously: to work other people to one’s will.

35. to use to one’s advantage: He worked his charm in landing a new job.

36. to make or decorate by needlework or embroidery.

37. to cause fermentation in.

38. work in or into,

a. to blend in.

b. to include after some effort: Try to work me into your schedule.

39. work off,

a. to lose or dispose of, as by exercise or labor: to work off a heavy meal with a long walk.

b. to pay or fulfill by working: to work off a debt.

40. work on or upon, to exercise influence on; persuade.

41. work out,

a. to bring about by work, effort, or action.

b. to solve, as a problem.

c. to arrive at by or as if by calculation.

d. to pay or fulfill by working; work off.

e. to exhaust, as a mine.

f. to issue in a result.

g. to evolve; elaborate.

h. (of a total, specified figure, etc.) to amount; add up: The total works out to 176.

i. to prove effective or successful: Their marriage just didn’t work out.

j. to practice, exercise, or train, esp. in an athletic sport: boxers working out at a gym.

42. work over,

a. to study or examine thoroughly.

b. to beat unsparingly.

43. work through, to deal with successfully; come to terms with.

44. work up,

a. to move or stir the feelings of; excite.

b. to prepare; elaborate: Work up a proposal.

c. to cause to develop by exertion: to work up an appetite.

Idioms:

1. at work,

a. working, as at one’s job.

b. in action or operation: machines at work.

2. in the works, in preparation or being planned.

3. out of work, unemployed; jobless.

[before 900; (n.) Middle English worke, Old English worc, replacing Middle English werk(e), Old English weorc, c. Old Frisian, Old Saxon werk, Old High German werah, werc, Old Norse verk, Greek érgon]

syn: work, drudgery, labor, toil refer to exertion of body or mind in performing or accomplishing something. work is a general word that refers to exertion that is either easy or hard: pleasurable work; backbreaking work. drudgery suggests continuous, dreary, and dispiriting work, esp. of a menial or servile kind: Cleaning these blinds is sheer drudgery. labor denotes hard manual work, esp. for wages: Repairing the bridge will require months of labor. toil suggests wearying or exhausting labor: The farmer’s health was failing from constant toil.

work

(wûrk)

The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Work

dull, laborious, or menial work. — drudge, n.

an obsession with public employment.

an abnormal fear of work.

an instrument that records the amount of work done when a muscle contracts. — ergographic, adj.

the study of the effect of work on mind and body. — ergologist, n.

a mania for work.

a person who loves to work.

a hatred of work.

laziness; the state of being idle. — fainéant, adj.

a work practice under which workers are able, within certain limits, to choose their own hours of work.

1. laborious work or study, especially when done late at night.
2. the work, as a book or treatise, produced or apparently produced this way. — lucubrator, n.

1. the state or quality of being industrious or busy.
2. the condition of being toilsome. — operose, adj.

the policy or practice of maintaining an office or position that provides income without demanding any or much work or attendance. Also sinecureship. — sinecure, n.

the methods of scientific factory management first introduced in the early 19th century by the American engineer Frederick W. Taylor, especially the differential piece-rate system.

an abnormal fear or dislike of being idle.

the practice or advocacy of working as a volunteer, often with the hope of thereby gaining paid employment in the same field.

Work

See Also: ATTENTION, BOREDOM, DOCTORS, LAWYERS, PROFESSIONS

All the romance had been scuffed off it [playing professional baseball against small-town teams] like the gloss on a brand-new baseball after nine innings of hard use —Howard Frank Mosher
All work is as seed sown; it grows and spreads, and sows itself anew —Thomas Carlyle
The back-breaking sixteen-hour day, like a heavy hand slapping —Bernard Malamud
Being a president is like riding a tiger. A man has to keep on riding or be swallowed —Harry S. Truman
(Reagan’s nostalgic wit was contributing to the feeling that he) dropped in and out of his job, like a cameo star on “The Love Boat” —Gerald Gardner
(My mom) getting paid for giving advice is like the Cookie Monster getting paid for eating cookies —Glenn Sapadin, upon hearing that his mother, Linda Sapadin, was finalist in contest to select a replacement for advice columnist Ann Landers, New York Times/ About New York, April 11, 1987
This job [being a prize fighter] needs gorgeous concentration … it’s like being a priest; our work comes first —Clifford Odets
The job [dean at a university] is like being pecked to death by ducks —John Roche, lecture at Ohio State University, 1962.
Jobs are like lobster pots, harder to get out of them than into —Hugh Leonard
Labor like Hercules —William H. Gass
The only time some people work like a horse is when the boss rides them —Gabriel Heatter
Toiled like movers trying to get a refrigerator into a fifth-floor walk-up —Russell Baker
Toiling like a bee in a hive —Noël Coward, lyrics for “World Weary”
(Fifty-two Sundays a year … for three hours my mother was) unemployed in her own house. Like a queen —Philip Roth
Roth’s comparison of a mother to an unemployed queen comes from his novel, The Ghost Writer.
Unemployed people (i.e. actors between plays) like ghosts looking for bodies to inhabit —Gail Godwin
Work drives you like a motor —Janet Flanner
Working the rivet line [at auto factory] is like being paid to flunk high school the rest of your life —Ben Hamper in article on changes at General Motors, Mother Jones, September 1986
Work is as much a necessity to man as eating and sleeping —Karl Wilhelm Humboldt
Work like a beaver —American colloquialism
This expression was popularized by the fur trappers who roamed the Rockies during the nineteenth century. Like many such terms it has gained much wider currency and seeded offshoots like “Eager as a beaver” and “Busy as a beaver.”
Work like a Trojan —Anon
A still popular simile that had its origins in the Greek classics which portrayed the Trojans as hard workers.
The work was getting to be like licking stamps eight hours a day —Loren D. Estleman

work

Work can be a verb or a noun.

1. used as a verb

People who work have a job which they are paid to do.

You need to save money for when you stop working.

I work in a hotel.

You can use as with work to say what a person’s job is.

Maria works as a nurse.

Be Careful!
You use the progressive -ing form of work to talk about a temporary job, but simple forms to talk about a permanent job. For example, if you say ‘I’m working in London’, this suggests that the situation is temporary and you may soon move. If you say ‘I work in London’, this suggests that London is your permanent place of work.

He was working as a truck driver because his business venture had failed.

2. used as a noun

If you have work, you have a job which you are paid to do.

There are many people who can’t find work.

The website has information on many different types of work.

When someone has a job, you can say that they are in work.

Fewer and fewer people are in work.

When someone does not have a job, you can say that they are out of work.

Her father had been out of work for six months.

Work is also used to talk about the place where someone works.

He drives to work by car.

I can’t leave work till five.

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

work

Past participle: worked
Gerund: working

Imperative
work
work

Present
I work
you work
he/she/it works
we work
you work
they work

Preterite
I worked
you worked
he/she/it worked
we worked
you worked
they worked

Present Continuous
I am working
you are working
he/she/it is working
we are working
you are working
they are working

Present Perfect
I have worked
you have worked
he/she/it has worked
we have worked
you have worked
they have worked

Past Continuous
I was working
you were working
he/she/it was working
we were working
you were working
they were working

Past Perfect
I had worked
you had worked
he/she/it had worked
we had worked
you had worked
they had worked

Future
I will work
you will work
he/she/it will work
we will work
you will work
they will work

Future Perfect
I will have worked
you will have worked
he/she/it will have worked
we will have worked
you will have worked
they will have worked

Future Continuous
I will be working
you will be working
he/she/it will be working
we will be working
you will be working
they will be working

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been working
you have been working
he/she/it has been working
we have been working
you have been working
they have been working

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been working
you will have been working
he/she/it will have been working
we will have been working
you will have been working
they will have been working

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been working
you had been working
he/she/it had been working
we had been working
you had been working
they had been working

Conditional
I would work
you would work
he/she/it would work
we would work
you would work
they would work

Past Conditional
I would have worked
you would have worked
he/she/it would have worked
we would have worked
you would have worked
they would have worked

work

Force multiplied by distance; work is measured in joules.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	work — activity directed toward making or doing something; «she checked several points needing further work» lavation, washing, wash — the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water) activity — any specific behavior; «they avoided all recreational activity» action — the most important or interesting work or activity in a specific area or field; «the action is no longer in technology stocks but in municipal bonds»; «gawkers always try to get as close to the action as possible» job — a damaging piece of work; «dry rot did the job of destroying the barn»; «the barber did a real job on my hair» job — the performance of a piece of work; «she did an outstanding job as Ophelia»; «he gave it up as a bad job» procedure, operation — a process or series of acts especially of a practical or mechanical nature involved in a particular form of work; «the operations in building a house»; «certain machine tool operations» service — work done by one person or group that benefits another; «budget separately for goods and services» polishing, shining — the work of making something smooth and shiny by rubbing or waxing it; «the shining of shoes provided a meager living»; «every Sunday he gave his car a good polishing» heavy lifting — difficult work; «the boss hoped the plan would succeed but he wasn’t willing to do the heavy lifting» housewifery — the work of a housewife housekeeping, housework — the work of cleaning and running a house ironing — the work of using heat to smooth washed clothes in order to remove any wrinkles busywork, make-work — active work of little value; «while he was waiting he filled the days with busywork» logging — the work of cutting down trees for timber loose end, unfinished business — work that is left incomplete nightwork — work to be done at night paperwork — work that involves handling papers: forms or letters or reports etc. social service, welfare work — an organized activity to improve the condition of disadvantaged people in society toil, labor, labour — productive work (especially physical work done for wages); «his labor did not require a great deal of skill» subbing, substituting — working as a substitute for someone who is ill or on leave of absence investigating, investigation — the work of inquiring into something thoroughly and systematically care, tending, attention, aid — the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something; «no medical care was required»; «the old car needs constant attention» duty — work that you are obliged to perform for moral or legal reasons; «the duties of the job» missionary work, mission — the organized work of a religious missionary spadework — dull or routine preliminary work preparing for an undertaking timework — work paid for at a rate per unit of time project, task, undertaking, labor — any piece of work that is undertaken or attempted; «he prepared for great undertakings» coursework — work assigned to and done by a student during a course of study; usually it is evaluated as part of the student’s grade in the course
	2.	work — a product produced or accomplished through the effort or activity or agency of a person or thing; «it is not regarded as one of his more memorable works»; «the symphony was hailed as an ingenious work»; «he was indebted to the pioneering work of John Dewey»; «the work of an active imagination»; «erosion is the work of wind or water over time» piece of work followup, follow-up — a piece of work that exploits or builds on earlier work; «his new software is a follow-up to the programs they started with» handcraft, handicraft, handiwork, handwork — a work produced by hand labor ironwork — work made of iron (gratings or rails or railings etc); «the houses had much ornamental ironwork» lacework — work consisting of (or resembling) lace fabric lacquerware — a decorative work made of wood and covered with lacquer and often inlaid with ivory or precious metals leatherwork — work made of leather chef-d’oeuvre, masterpiece — the most outstanding work of a creative artist or craftsman metalwork — the metal parts of something; «there were bullet holes in the metalwork» openwork — ornamental work (such as embroidery or latticework) having a pattern of openings polychrome — a piece of work composed of or decorated in many colors product, production — an artifact that has been created by someone or some process; «they improve their product every year»; «they export most of their agricultural production» silverwork — decorative work made of silver caning, wickerwork, wicker — work made of interlaced slender branches (especially willow branches) woodwork — work made of wood; especially moldings or stairways or furniture work in progress — a piece of work that is not yet finished workpiece — work consisting of a piece of metal being machined publication — a copy of a printed work offered for distribution
	3.	work — the occupation for which you are paid; «he is looking for employment»; «a lot of people are out of work» employment coaching, coaching job — the job of a professional coach booking, engagement — employment for performers or performing groups that lasts for a limited period of time; «the play had bookings throughout the summer» ministry — the work of a minister of religion; «he is studying for the ministry» sailing, seafaring, navigation — the work of a sailor work load, workload — work that a person is expected to do in a specified time piecework — work paid for according to the quantity produced job, line of work, occupation, business, line — the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money; «he’s not in my line of business» service — employment in or work for another; «he retired after 30 years of service» telecommuting, teleworking — employment at home while communicating with the workplace by phone or fax or modem services — performance of duties or provision of space and equipment helpful to others; «the mayor tried to maintain city services»; «the medical services are excellent» public service — employment within a government system (especially in the civil service) paper route — the job of delivering newspapers regularly
	4.	work — applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject (especially by reading); «mastering a second language requires a lot of work»; «no schools offer graduate study in interior design» study learning, acquisition — the cognitive process of acquiring skill or knowledge; «the child’s acquisition of language»
	5.	work — (physics) a manifestation of energy; the transfer of energy from one physical system to another expressed as the product of a force and the distance through which it moves a body in the direction of that force; «work equals force times distance» natural philosophy, physics — the science of matter and energy and their interactions; «his favorite subject was physics» energy, free energy — (physics) a thermodynamic quantity equivalent to the capacity of a physical system to do work; the units of energy are joules or ergs; «energy can take a wide variety of forms»
	6.	work — a place where work is done; «he arrived at work early today» workplace bakehouse, bakery, bakeshop — a workplace where baked goods (breads and cakes and pastries) are produced or sold beehive — any workplace where people are very busy brokerage house, brokerage — place where a broker conducts his business central, telephone exchange, exchange — a workplace that serves as a telecommunications facility where lines from telephones can be connected together to permit communication colliery, pit — a workplace consisting of a coal mine plus all the buildings and equipment connected with it creamery — a workplace where dairy products (butter and cheese etc.) are produced or sold drill site — workplace that is the site of a drill hole exchange — a workplace for buying and selling; open only to members farm — workplace consisting of farm buildings and cultivated land as a unit; «it takes several people to work the farm» fishery, piscary — a workplace where fish are caught and processed and sold fish farm — a workplace (usually a pond) where fish are raised for food smithy, forge — a workplace where metal is worked by heating and hammering gasworks — the workplace where coal gas is manufactured glassworks — a workplace where glass is made ironworks — the workplace where iron is smelted or where iron goods are made job — a workplace; as in the expression «on the job»; lab, laboratory, research lab, research laboratory, science lab, science laboratory — a workplace for the conduct of scientific research laundry — workplace where clothes are washed and ironed location — a workplace away from a studio at which some or all of a movie may be made; «they shot the film on location in Nevada» locker room — a room (as at an athletic facility or workplace) where you can change clothes and which contains lockers for the temporary storage of your clothing and personal possessions lumberyard — a workplace where lumber is stocked for sale oyster bank, oyster bed, oyster park — a workplace where oysters are bred and grown proving ground — a workplace for testing new equipment or ideas rope yard, ropewalk — workplace consisting of a long narrow path or shed where rope is made roundhouse — workplace consisting of a circular building for repairing locomotives shipyard — a workplace where ships are built or repaired shop floor — workplace consisting of the part of a factory housing the machines; «the productive work is done on the shop floor» studio — workplace for the teaching or practice of an art; «she ran a dance studio»; «the music department provided studios for their students»; «you don’t need a studio to make a passport photograph» studio — workplace consisting of a room or building where movies or television shows or radio programs are produced and recorded tannery — workplace where skins and hides are tanned test bed — a place equipped with instruments for testing (e.g. engines or machinery or computer programs etc.) under working conditions waterworks — workplace where water is stored and purified and distributed for a community workshop, shop — small workplace where handcrafts or manufacturing are done geographic point, geographical point — a point on the surface of the Earth
	7.	work — the total output of a writer or artist (or a substantial part of it); «he studied the entire Wagnerian oeuvre»; «Picasso’s work can be divided into periods» body of work, oeuvre end product, output — final product; the things produced writing — (usually plural) the collected work of an author; «the idea occurs with increasing frequency in Hemingway’s writings»
Verb	1.	work — exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity; «I will work hard to improve my grades»; «she worked hard for better living conditions for the poor» run through, work through, go through — apply thoroughly; think through; «We worked through an example» monkey around, muck about, muck around, potter, mess around, tinker, monkey, putter — do random, unplanned work or activities or spend time idly; «The old lady is usually mucking about in her little house» carpenter — work as a carpenter do work, work — be employed; «Is your husband working again?»; «My wife never worked»; «Do you want to work after the age of 60?»; «She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money»; «She works as a waitress to put herself through college» clerk — work as a clerk, as in the legal business page — work as a page; «He is paging in Congress this summer» waitress, wait — serve as a waiter or waitress in a restaurant; «I’m waiting on tables at Maxim’s» pull one’s weight — do one’s share in a common task; «Bob has never pulled his weight, and we all have to work harder to make up for his laziness» electioneer — work actively for a political candidate or a party; «My neighbors are busy electioneering during the Presidential election campaign» assist — act as an assistant in a subordinate or supportive function beaver, beaver away — work hard on something work at, work on — to exert effort in order to do, make, or perform something; «the child worked at the multiplication table until she had it down cold» keep one’s nose to the grindstone, keep one’s shoulder to the wheel, peg away, plug away, slog — work doggedly or persistently; «She keeps plugging away at her dissertation» busy, occupy — keep busy with; «She busies herself with her butterfly collection» collaborate, cooperate, join forces, get together — work together on a common enterprise of project; «The soprano and the pianist did not get together very well»; «We joined forces with another research group» volunteer — do volunteer work specialise, specialize — devote oneself to a special area of work; «She specializes in honey bees»; «This baker specializes in French bread» minister — work as a minister; «She is ministering in an old parish» intern — work as an intern; «The young doctor is interning at the Medical Center this year» skipper — work as the skipper on a vessel boondoggle — do useless, wasteful, or trivial work scant, skimp — work hastily or carelessly; deal with inadequately and superficially serve — devote (part of) one’s life or efforts to, as of countries, institutions, or ideas; «She served the art of music»; «He served the church»; «serve the country» work — operate in a certain place, area, or specialty; «She works the night clubs»; «The salesman works the Midwest»; «This artist works mostly in acrylics» laze, slug, idle, stagnate — be idle; exist in a changeless situation; «The old man sat and stagnated on his porch»; «He slugged in bed all morning»
	2.	work — be employed; «Is your husband working again?»; «My wife never worked»; «Do you want to work after the age of 60?»; «She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money»; «She works as a waitress to put herself through college» do work serve — do duty or hold offices; serve in a specific function; «He served as head of the department for three years»; «She served in Congress for two terms» bank — be in the banking business fill, occupy, take — assume, as of positions or roles; «She took the job as director of development»; «he occupies the position of manager»; «the young prince will soon occupy the throne» put to work, work — cause to work; «he is working his servants hard» drive — work as a driver; «He drives a bread truck»; «She drives for the taxi company in Newark» tinker — work as a tinker or tinkerer serve — do military service; «She served in Vietnam»; «My sons never served, because they are short-sighted» blackleg, fink, scab, rat — take the place of work of someone on strike work — exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity; «I will work hard to improve my grades»; «she worked hard for better living conditions for the poor» drudge, labour, moil, toil, travail, labor, dig, grind — work hard; «She was digging away at her math homework»; «Lexicographers drudge all day long» farm — be a farmer; work as a farmer; «My son is farming in California» moonlight — work a second job, usually after hours; «The law student is moonlighting as a taxi driver» job — work occasionally; «As a student I jobbed during the semester breaks» man — take charge of a certain job; occupy a certain work place; «Mr. Smith manned the reception desk in the morning» break one’s back, buckle down, knuckle down, slave — work very hard, like a slave subcontract — work under a subcontract; engage in a subcontract turn a trick — have a customer, of a prostitute freelance — work independently and on temporary contracts rather than for a long-term employer work — operate in a certain place, area, or specialty; «She works the night clubs»; «The salesman works the Midwest»; «This artist works mostly in acrylics»
	3.	work — have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or expected; «The voting process doesn’t work as well as people thought»; «How does your idea work in practice?»; «This method doesn’t work»; «The breaks of my new car act quickly»; «The medicine works only if you take it with a lot of water» act make for, wreak, bring, work, play — cause to happen or to occur as a consequence; «I cannot work a miracle»; «wreak havoc»; «bring comments»; «play a joke»; «The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area» bring home the bacon, deliver the goods, succeed, win, come through — attain success or reach a desired goal; «The enterprise succeeded»; «We succeeded in getting tickets to the show»; «she struggled to overcome her handicap and won»
	4.	work — perform as expected when applied; «The washing machine won’t go unless it’s plugged in»; «Does this old car still run well?»; «This old radio doesn’t work anymore» function, operate, run, go double — do double duty; serve two purposes or have two functions; «She doubles as his wife and secretary» roll — begin operating or running; «The cameras were rolling»; «The presses are already rolling» run — be operating, running or functioning; «The car is still running—turn it off!» cut — function as a cutting instrument; «This knife cuts well» work — operate in or through; «Work the phones» service, serve — be used by; as of a utility; «The sewage plant served the neighboring communities»; «The garage served to shelter his horses»
	5.	work — shape, form, or improve a material; «work stone into tools»; «process iron»; «work the metal» work on, process transform, transmute, transubstantiate — change or alter in form, appearance, or nature; «This experience transformed her completely»; «She transformed the clay into a beautiful sculpture»; «transubstantiate one element into another» shape, mould, mold, form, forge, work — make something, usually for a specific function; «She molded the rice balls carefully»; «Form cylinders from the dough»; «shape a figure»; «Work the metal into a sword» hot-work — roll, press, forge, or shape (metal) while hot cold work, coldwork — shape (metal) without heat overwork — use too much; «This play has been overworked» make over, retread, rework — use again in altered form; «retread an old plot» rack — work on a rack; «rack leather» tool — work with a tool till — work land as by ploughing, harrowing, and manuring, in order to make it ready for cultivation; «till the soil»
	6.	work — give a workout to; «Some parents exercise their infants»; «My personal trainer works me hard»; «work one’s muscles»; «this puzzle will exercise your mind» exercise, work out exercise, work out — do physical exercise; «She works out in the gym every day» warm up — cause to do preliminary exercises so as to stretch the muscles; «The coach warmed up the players before the game» put to work, work — cause to work; «he is working his servants hard»
	7.	work — proceed along a path; «work one’s way through the crowd»; «make one’s way into the forest» make claw — move as if by clawing, seizing, or digging; «They clawed their way to the top of the mountain» jostle — make one’s way by jostling, pushing, or shoving; «We had to jostle our way to the front of the platform» go across, pass, go through — go across or through; «We passed the point where the police car had parked»; «A terrible thought went through his mind» bushwhack — cut one’s way through the woods or bush work — proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity; «work your way through every problem or task»; «She was working on her second martini when the guests arrived»; «Start from the bottom and work towards the top»
	8.	work — operate in a certain place, area, or specialty; «She works the night clubs»; «The salesman works the Midwest»; «This artist works mostly in acrylics» do work, work — be employed; «Is your husband working again?»; «My wife never worked»; «Do you want to work after the age of 60?»; «She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money»; «She works as a waitress to put herself through college» work — exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity; «I will work hard to improve my grades»; «she worked hard for better living conditions for the poor»
	9.	work — proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity; «work your way through every problem or task»; «She was working on her second martini when the guests arrived»; «Start from the bottom and work towards the top» work, make — proceed along a path; «work one’s way through the crowd»; «make one’s way into the forest» go, proceed, move — follow a procedure or take a course; «We should go farther in this matter»; «She went through a lot of trouble»; «go about the world in a certain manner»; «Messages must go through diplomatic channels»
	10.	work — move in an agitated manner; «His fingers worked with tension» move, displace — cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense; «Move those boxes into the corner, please»; «I’m moving my money to another bank»; «The director moved more responsibilities onto his new assistant»
	11.	work — cause to happen or to occur as a consequence; «I cannot work a miracle»; «wreak havoc»; «bring comments»; «play a joke»; «The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area» make for, wreak, bring, play create, make — make or cause to be or to become; «make a mess in one’s office»; «create a furor» work, act — have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or expected; «The voting process doesn’t work as well as people thought»; «How does your idea work in practice?»; «This method doesn’t work»; «The breaks of my new car act quickly»; «The medicine works only if you take it with a lot of water»
	12.	work — cause to work; «he is working his servants hard» put to work exercise, work, work out — give a workout to; «Some parents exercise their infants»; «My personal trainer works me hard»; «work one’s muscles»; «this puzzle will exercise your mind» warm up — cause to do preliminary exercises so as to stretch the muscles; «The coach warmed up the players before the game» apply, employ, use, utilise, utilize — put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose; «use your head!»; «we only use Spanish at home»; «I can’t use this tool»; «Apply a magnetic field here»; «This thinking was applied to many projects»; «How do you utilize this tool?»; «I apply this rule to get good results»; «use the plastic bags to store the food»; «He doesn’t know how to use a computer» cybernate, computerise, computerize — control a function, process, or creation by a computer; «They computerized the car industry»; «we live in a cybernated age»; «cybernate a factory» rack — put on a rack and pinion; «rack a camera» overwork, exploit — work excessively hard; «he is exploiting the students» do work, work — be employed; «Is your husband working again?»; «My wife never worked»; «Do you want to work after the age of 60?»; «She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money»; «She works as a waitress to put herself through college»
	13.	work — prepare for crops; «Work the soil»; «cultivate the land» crop, cultivate farming, husbandry, agriculture — the practice of cultivating the land or raising stock gear up, prepare, ready, set, fix, set up — make ready or suitable or equip in advance for a particular purpose or for some use, event, etc; «Get the children ready for school!»; «prepare for war»; «I was fixing to leave town after I paid the hotel bill» knead, work — make uniform; «knead dough»; «work the clay until it is soft» overcrop, overcultivate — to exhaust by excessive cultivation; «the farmers overcropped the land»
	14.	work — behave in a certain way when handled; «This dough does not work easily»; «The soft metal works well» knead, work — make uniform; «knead dough»; «work the clay until it is soft» be — have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun); «John is rich»; «This is not a good answer»
	15.	work — have and exert influence or effect; «The artist’s work influenced the young painter»; «She worked on her friends to support the political candidate» act upon, influence affect, bear upon, impact, bear on, touch on, touch — have an effect upon; «Will the new rules affect me?» prejudice, prepossess — influence (somebody’s) opinion in advance imprint, form — establish or impress firmly in the mind; «We imprint our ideas onto our children» militate — have force or influence; bring about an effect or change; «Politeness militated against this opinion being expressed» manipulate, pull strings, pull wires — influence or control shrewdly or deviously; «He manipulated public opinion in his favor» colour, color — modify or bias; «His political ideas color his lectures» swing over, swing — influence decisively; «This action swung many votes over to his side» blackjack, blackmail, pressure — exert pressure on someone through threats persuade, sway, carry — win approval or support for; «Carry all before one»; «His speech did not sway the voters» get at — influence by corruption fix — influence an event or its outcome by illegal means; «fix a race» dominate — be in control; «Her husband completely dominates her»
	16.	work — operate in or through; «Work the phones» function, operate, work, run, go — perform as expected when applied; «The washing machine won’t go unless it’s plugged in»; «Does this old car still run well?»; «This old radio doesn’t work anymore» work — cause to operate or function; «This pilot works the controls»; «Can you work an electric drill?» operate, run — direct or control; projects, businesses, etc.; «She is running a relief operation in the Sudan»
	17.	work — cause to operate or function; «This pilot works the controls»; «Can you work an electric drill?» handle, manage, care, deal — be in charge of, act on, or dispose of; «I can deal with this crew of workers»; «This blender can’t handle nuts»; «She managed her parents’ affairs after they got too old» work — operate in or through; «Work the phones»
	18.	work — provoke or excite; «The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy» exploit, work — use or manipulate to one’s advantage; «He exploit the new taxation system»; «She knows how to work the system»; «he works his parents for sympathy» work — gratify and charm, usually in order to influence; «the political candidate worked the crowds» excite, stir, stimulate — stir feelings in; «stimulate my appetite»; «excite the audience»; «stir emotions»
	19.	work — gratify and charm, usually in order to influence; «the political candidate worked the crowds» bewitch, captivate, charm, enamor, enamour, entrance, trance, becharm, beguile, enchant, capture, fascinate, catch — attract; cause to be enamored; «She captured all the men’s hearts» work — provoke or excite; «The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy»
	20.	work — make something, usually for a specific function; «She molded the rice balls carefully»; «Form cylinders from the dough»; «shape a figure»; «Work the metal into a sword» shape, mould, mold, form, forge carve — form by carving; «Carve a flower from the ice» swage, upset — form metals with a swage chip — form by chipping; «They chipped their names in the stone» layer — make or form a layer; «layer the different colored sands» cut out — form and create by cutting out; «Picasso cut out a guitar from a piece of paper» machine — turn, shape, mold, or otherwise finish by machinery grind — shape or form by grinding; «grind lenses for glasses and cameras» stamp — form or cut out with a mold, form, or die; «stamp needles» puddle — subject to puddling or form by puddling; «puddle iron» beat — shape by beating; «beat swords into ploughshares» create from raw material, create from raw stuff — make from scratch preform — form or shape beforehand or determine the shape of beforehand preform — form into a shape resembling the final, desired one mound — form into a rounded elevation; «mound earth» hill — form into a hill roughcast — shape roughly remold, reshape — shape again or shape differently sinter — cause (ores or powdery metals) to become a coherent mass by heating without melting mould, mold, cast — form by pouring (e.g., wax or hot metal) into a cast or mold; «cast a bronze sculpture» throw — make on a potter’s wheel; «she threw a beautiful teapot» handbuild, hand-build, coil — make without a potter’s wheel; «This famous potter hand-builds all of her vessels» work on, work, process — shape, form, or improve a material; «work stone into tools»; «process iron»; «work the metal» sculpt, sculpture — create by shaping stone or wood or any other hard material; «sculpt a swan out of a block of ice» mold, mould, model — form in clay, wax, etc; «model a head with clay»
	21.	work — move into or onto; «work the raisins into the dough»; «the student worked a few jokes into his presentation»; «work the body onto the flatbed truck» stir — mix or add by stirring; «Stir nuts into the dough» move, displace — cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense; «Move those boxes into the corner, please»; «I’m moving my money to another bank»; «The director moved more responsibilities onto his new assistant»
	22.	work — make uniform; «knead dough»; «work the clay until it is soft» knead manipulate — hold something in one’s hands and move it proof — knead to reach proper lightness; «proof dough» masticate — grind and knead; «masticate rubber» crop, cultivate, work — prepare for crops; «Work the soil»; «cultivate the land» work — behave in a certain way when handled; «This dough does not work easily»; «The soft metal works well»
	23.	work — use or manipulate to one’s advantage; «He exploit the new taxation system»; «She knows how to work the system»; «he works his parents for sympathy» exploit apply, employ, use, utilise, utilize — put into service; make work or employ for a particular purpose or for its inherent or natural purpose; «use your head!»; «we only use Spanish at home»; «I can’t use this tool»; «Apply a magnetic field here»; «This thinking was applied to many projects»; «How do you utilize this tool?»; «I apply this rule to get good results»; «use the plastic bags to store the food»; «He doesn’t know how to use a computer» make hay — turn to one’s advantage; «The environmentalist lobby made hay of the nuclear plant accident» play — use to one’s advantage; «She plays on her clients’ emotions» avail, help — take or use; «She helped herself to some of the office supplies» prey, feed — profit from in an exploitatory manner; «He feeds on her insecurity» work — provoke or excite; «The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy» use — seek or achieve an end by using to one’s advantage; «She uses her influential friends to get jobs»; «The president’s wife used her good connections»
	24.	work — find the solution to (a problem or question) or understand the meaning of; «did you solve the problem?»; «Work out your problems with the boss»; «this unpleasant situation isn’t going to work itself out»; «did you get it?»; «Did you get my meaning?»; «He could not work the math problem» figure out, puzzle out, solve, lick, work out understand — know and comprehend the nature or meaning of; «She did not understand her husband»; «I understand what she means» answer, resolve — understand the meaning of; «The question concerning the meaning of life cannot be answered» riddle — explain a riddle strike — arrive at after reckoning, deliberating, and weighing; «strike a balance»; «strike a bargain» guess, infer — guess correctly; solve by guessing; «He guessed the right number of beans in the jar and won the prize» answer — give the correct answer or solution to; «answer a question»; «answer the riddle» break — find the solution or key to; «break the code»
	25.	work — cause to undergo fermentation; «We ferment the grapes for a very long time to achieve high alcohol content»; «The vintner worked the wine in big oak vats» ferment convert — change the nature, purpose, or function of something; «convert lead into gold»; «convert hotels into jails»; «convert slaves to laborers» sour, ferment, turn, work — go sour or spoil; «The milk has soured»; «The wine worked»; «The cream has turned—we have to throw it out» vinify — convert a juice into wine by fermentation; «vinify grape juice»
	26.	work — go sour or spoil; «The milk has soured»; «The wine worked»; «The cream has turned—we have to throw it out» sour, ferment, turn change state, turn — undergo a transformation or a change of position or action; «We turned from Socialism to Capitalism»; «The people turned against the President when he stole the election» ferment, work — cause to undergo fermentation; «We ferment the grapes for a very long time to achieve high alcohol content»; «The vintner worked the wine in big oak vats»
	27.	work — arrive at a certain condition through repeated motion; «The stitches of the hem worked loose after she wore the skirt many times» become, get, go — enter or assume a certain state or condition; «He became annoyed when he heard the bad news»; «It must be getting more serious»; «her face went red with anger»; «She went into ecstasy»; «Get going!»

work

verb

2. labour, sweat, slave, toil, slog (away), drudge, peg away, exert yourself, break your back My father worked hard all his life.
labour play, relax, laze, have fun, take it easy, mark time, skive (Brit. slang), bludge (Austral. & N.Z. informal)

4. succeed, work out, pay off (informal), be successful, be effective, do the trick (informal), do the business (informal), get results, turn out well, have the desired result, go as planned Most of these diets don’t work.

5. accomplish, cause, create, effect, achieve, carry out, implement, execute, bring about, encompass, contrive Modern medicine can work miracles.

8. operate, use, move, control, drive, manage, direct, handle, manipulate, wield, ply I learnt how to work the forklift.

noun

1. employment, calling, business, job, line, office, trade, duty, craft, profession, occupation, pursuit, livelihood, métier What kind of work do you do?
employment play, holiday, unemployment, entertainment, retirement, hobby, recreation, spare time

2. effort, industry, labour, grind (informal), sweat, toil, slog, exertion, drudgery, travail (literary), elbow grease (facetious) This needs time and a lot of hard work.
effort rest, ease, leisure, relaxation

plural noun

3. deeds, acts, actions, doings a religious order who dedicated their lives to prayer and good works

work on someone persuade, influence, manipulate, sway, put pressure on, coax, lean on, cajole, soften up, put the squeeze on someone (informal), twist someone’s arm (informal) She’s working on her dad to give her the money for the trip.

work out

2. succeed, flourish, go well, be effective, prosper, go as planned, prove satisfactory I hope everything works out for you in your new job.

work someone up excite, move, spur, wind up (informal), arouse, animate, rouse, stir up, agitate, inflame, incite, instigate, get someone all steamed up (slang) By now she had worked herself up so much that she couldn’t sleep.

work something out

2. plan, form, develop, arrange, construct, evolve, devise, elaborate, put together, formulate, contrive Negotiators are due to meet today to work out a compromise.

Quotations
«I just don’t happen to think [work]’s an appropriate subject for an ethic» [Barbara Ehrenreich Goodbye to the Work Ethic]
«Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion» [N. Northcote Parkinson Parkinson’s Law]
«I mean, really: Why work? Simply to buy more stuff?» [Douglas Coupland Generation X]
«Work is the curse of the drinking classes» [Oscar Wilde]
«Work is the great cure of all maladies and miseries that ever beset mankind» [Thomas Carlyle]
«If any would not work, neither should he eat» Bible: II Thessalonians
«All that matters is love and work» [attributed to Sigmund Freud]
«Anyone can do any amount of work, provided it isn’t the work he is supposed to be doing» [Robert Benchley]

Proverbs
«All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy»

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

work

noun

1. Physical exertion that is usually difficult and exhausting:

Chiefly British: fag.

Idiom: sweat of one’s brow.

2. Activity pursued as a livelihood:

art, business, calling, career, craft, employment, job, line, métier, occupation, profession, pursuit, trade, vocation.

4. Something that is the result of creative effort:

5. An issue of printed material offered for sale or distribution:

6. A building or complex in which an industry is located.Used in plural:

7. The technique, style, and quality of working:

8. Informal. An amount or quantity from which nothing is left out or held back.Used in plural:

verb

1. To exert one’s mental or physical powers, usually under difficulty and to the point of exhaustion:

2. To perform a function effectively:

3. To react in a specified way:

5. To control or direct the functioning of:

6. To arrive at an answer to (a mathematical problem):

7. To handle in a way so as to mix, form, and shape:

8. To introduce gradually and slyly:

9. To prepare (soil) for the planting and raising of crops:

phrasal verb
work out

1. To arrive at an answer to (a mathematical problem):

2. To plan the details or arrangements of:

3. To form a strategy for:

blueprint, cast, chart, conceive, contrive, design, devise, formulate, frame, lay, plan, project, scheme, strategize.

Idiom: lay plans.

5. To subject to or engage in forms of exertion in order to train, strengthen, or condition:

phrasal verb
work up

To stir to action or feeling:

egg on, excite, foment, galvanize, goad, impel, incite, inflame, inspire, instigate, motivate, move, pique, prick, prod, prompt, propel, provoke, set off, spur, stimulate, touch off, trigger.

Translations

تَعْمَل، تَشتَغِلشُغلعَمَلعَمَل فَنّيعَمَل، جُهْد

prácepracovatfungovatopracovatzaměstnání

arbejdevirkefungeregåhave arbejde

laborilaboro

teos

toimiatyöskennellätyötyöpaikkavaikuttaa

raditiposaoraddjelofunkcionirati

beválikfelküzdi magátkidolgozműmunka

vinnavinna, mótavinna, starfvinna, starfa; láta vinnavinnustaîur

働く労働機能する起こす

일일하다작동하다

… daiktai… darbaidalysdarbedarbininkų klasė

ar pūlēm tikt uz priekšudarba rezultātsdarbavietadarbinātdarboties

nútiť do práceosvedčiť saraziť si cestuvypracovať

delatidelodelovatislužbavaditi

arbetaarbetefungeragåjobb

การงานทำงาน

công việchoạt độnglàm việc

work

[ˈwɜː^rk]

(= painting, book, piece of music) → œuvre f
This is Rembrandt’s greatest work → C’est la plus grande œuvre de Rembrandt.

to be the work of sb (= to have been done by sb) → être l’œuvre f de qn
Police suspect the ambush was the work of guerrillas → La police soupçonne l’embuscade d’être l’œuvre de guérilleros.

modif [clothes, colleague, commitments, environment, visa] → de travail; [opportunities] → d’emploi

(= shape) [+ clay, wood, stone, leather] → travailler

(= operate in) [sales rep] [+ area, region] → faire
She works clubs and pubs → Elle fait les boîtes et les pubs.

(= bring about) [+ miracles, change] → faire
I can’t work miracles, you know → Je ne peux pas faire des miracles, vous savez.

(= exert) to work one’s charm on sb → exercer son charme sur qn
to work one’s magic on sb → tenir qn sous son charme

(COOKERY) to work sth in [+ flour, butter] → intégrer qch
to work sth into sth [+ oil, flour, butter] → intégrer qch à qch

work off

vt sep

(= base o.s. on) [+ principle, assumption] → partir de
to work on the principle that → partir du principe que

work out

vt sep

(= calculate) [+ answer] → trouver

to work out at (= add up to) → revenir à
It works out at £10 each → Cela revient à dix livres chacun.
to work out cheaper → revenir moins cher

work towards

vt fus [+ solution, agreement, compromise] → travailler à

work up

vt sep

to work o.s. up → s’énerver
You’re working yourself up over nothing → Tu t’énerves pour rien.
She worked herself up into a bit of a state
BUT Elle s’est mise dans un drôle d’état.

to work up the courage to do sth → trouver le courage de faire qch
to work up the energy to do sth → trouver l’énergie de faire qch
He couldn’t work up any enthusiasm for the idea → Il n’arrivait pas du tout à s’enthousiasmer pour cette idée.

work

workbag

n (Sew) → Näh- or Handarbeitsbeutel m

work basket

n (Sew) → Näh- or Handarbeitskorb m

work

workfare

n Programm, das Arbeitslose verpflichtet, eine Tätigkeit oder Ausbildung zu absolvieren, um weiterhin Zahlungen zu empfangen

work file

n (Comput) → Arbeitsdatei f

workflow schedule

n → Arbeitsablaufplan m

work glove

n → Arbeitshandschuh m

work

workmen’s comp

n (inf), workmen’s compensation

n (US, in case of occupational disease etc) → Entschädigung f

workplace bullying

n → Mobbing nt → (am Arbeitsplatz)

work programme, (US) work program

work

work-study

n → REFA- or Arbeitsstudie f

work surface

n → Arbeitsfläche f

work ticket

n → Arbeitszettel m

worktop

n (Brit) → Arbeitsfläche f

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

work

[wɜːk]

work in

1. vi + adv (arrangement) → inserirsi

work on vi + prep

b. (principle, assumption) → basarsi su
we’ve no clues to work on → non abbiamo indizi su cui basarci
we’re working on the principle that … → partiamo dal presupposto che… + sub

c. (persuade, influence) to work on sb → lavorarsi qn

work out

2. vt + adv

c. (understand, behaviour) → capire

d. (exhaust, resources) → esaurire

work over vt + adv (fam) → pestare

work up vt + adv

b. to work sb up into a temper/fury → far arrabbiare/infuriare qn

work up to vi + adv + prep (point, climax) → preparare il terreno a

work

(wəːk) noun

1. effort made in order to achieve or make something. He has done a lot of work on this project

2. employment. I cannot find work in this town.

3. a task or tasks; the thing that one is working on. Please clear your work off the table.

4. a painting, book, piece of music etc. the works of Van Gogh / Shakespeare/Mozart; This work was composed in 1816.

5. the product or result of a person’s labours. His work has shown a great improvement lately.

6. one’s place of employment. He left (his) work at 5.30 p.m.; I don’t think I’ll go to work tomorrow.

verb

1. to (cause to) make efforts in order to achieve or make something. She works at the factory three days a week; He works his employees very hard; I’ve been working on/at a new project.

2. to be employed. Are you working just now?

3. to (cause to) operate (in the correct way). He has no idea how that machine works / how to work that machine; That machine doesn’t/won’t work, but this one’s working.

4. to be practicable and/or successful. If my scheme works, we’ll be rich!

5. to make (one’s way) slowly and carefully with effort or difficulty. She worked her way up the rock face.

6. to get into, or put into, a stated condition or position, slowly and gradually. The wheel worked loose.

7. to make by craftsmanship. The ornaments had been worked in gold.

-work

1. (the art of making) goods of a particular material. He learns woodwork at school; This shop sells basketwork.

2. parts of something, eg a building, made of a particular material. The stonework/woodwork/paintwork needs to be renewed.

ˈworkable adjective

(of a plan) able to be carried out.

ˈworker noun

1. a person who works or who is employed in an office, a factory etc. office-workers; car-workers.

2. a manual worker rather than an office-worker etc.

3. a person who works (hard etc). He’s a slow/hard worker.

works noun singular or plural

a factory etc. The steelworks is/are closed for the holidays.

noun plural

1. the mechanism (of a watch, clock etc). The works are all rusted.

2. deeds, actions etc. She’s devoted her life to good works.

ˈwork-basket, ˈwork-box

etc nouns a basket, box etc for holding thread, needlework etc.

ˈworkbook noun

a book of exercises usually with spaces for answers.

ˈworkforce noun

the number of workers (available for work) in a particular industry, factory etc.

working class

the section of society who work with their hands, doing manual labour.

working day, ˈwork-day nouns

1. a day on which one goes to work, and is not on holiday.

2. the period of actual labour in a normal day at work. My working day is eight hours long.

working hours

the times of day between which one is at work. Normal working hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

ˈworking-party, ˈwork-party nouns

a group of people gathered together (usually voluntarily) to perform a particular physical task. They organized a work-party to clear the canal of weeds.

working week

the five days from Monday to Friday inclusive when people go to work.

ˈworkman noun

a man who does manual work. the workmen on a building site.

ˈworkmanlike adjective

1. suitable to a good workman. a workmanlike attitude.

2. well performed. a workmanlike job.

ˈworkmanship noun

the skill of a qualified workman; skill in making things.

ˈworkmate noun

one of the people who work in the same place of employment as oneself. Her workmates teased her about being the boss’s favourite.

ˈworkout noun

a period of hard physical exercise for the purpose of keeping fit etc.

ˈworkshop noun

1. a room or building, especially in a factory etc where construction and repairs are carried out.

2. a course of experimental work for a group of people on a particular project.

at work

working. He’s writing a novel and he likes to be at work (on it) by eight o’clock every morning.

get/set to work

to start work. Could you get to work painting that ceiling?; I’ll have to set to work on this mending this evening.

go to work on

to begin work on. We’re thinking of going to work on an extension to the house.

have one’s work cut out

to be faced with a difficult task. You’ll have your work cut out to beat the champion.

in working order

(of a machine etc) operating correctly.

out of work

having no employment. He’s been out of work for months.

work of art

a painting, sculpture etc.

work off

to get rid of (something unwanted or unpleasant) by taking physical exercise etc. He worked off his anger by running round the garden six times.

work out

1. to solve or calculate correctly. I can’t work out how many should be left.

2. to come to a satisfactory end. Don’t worry – it will all work out (in the end).

3. to perform physical exercises.

work up

1. to excite or rouse gradually. She worked herself up into a fury. (adjective ˌworked-ˈup: Don’t get so worked-up!).

2. to raise or create. I just can’t work up any energy/appetite/enthusiasm today.

work up to

to progress towards and prepare for. Work up to the difficult exercises gradually.

work wonders

to produce marvellous results. These pills have worked wonders on my rheumatism.

work

→ عَمَل, يَشْتَغِلُ, يَعْمَلُ fungovat, práce, pracovat arbejde, virke Arbeit, arbeiten, funktionieren δουλειά, δουλεύω, λειτουργώ funcionar, trabajar, trabajo toimia, työ, työskennellä fonctionner, travail, travailler posao, raditi funzionare, lavorare, lavoro 働く, 労働, 機能する 일, 일하다, 작동하다 werk, werken arbeid, arbeide, virke działać, praca, pracować funcionar, trabalhar, trabalho работа, работать arbeta, arbete, fungera การงาน, ทำงาน çalışmak, iş công việc, hoạt động, làm việc 工作, 运转

work

n. trabajo, empleo, ocupación;

v. trabajar.

work

adj laboral, del trabajo; n trabajo; social — trabajo social; vi trabajar; (to function) funcionar, trabajar; Your kidneys have stopped working.. Sus riñones han dejado de funcionar; to — out (to exercise) hacer ejercicio (esp. del tipo que se hace en un gimnasio)

Источник

Entertainment & Pop Culture
Geography & Travel
Health & Medicine
Lifestyles & Social Issues
Literature
Philosophy & Religion
Politics, Law & Government
Science
Sports & Recreation
Technology
Visual Arts
World History

On This Day in History
Quizzes
Podcasts
Dictionary
Biographies
Summaries
Top Questions
Infographics
Demystified
Lists
#WTFact
Companions
Image Galleries
Spotlight
The Forum
One Good Fact

Entertainment & Pop Culture
Geography & Travel
Health & Medicine
Lifestyles & Social Issues
Literature
Philosophy & Religion
Politics, Law & Government
Science
Sports & Recreation
Technology
Visual Arts
World History

Britannica Explains
In these videos, Britannica explains a variety of topics and answers frequently asked questions.
Britannica Classics
Check out these retro videos from Encyclopedia Britannica’s archives.
Demystified Videos
In Demystified, Britannica has all the answers to your burning questions.
#WTFact Videos
In #WTFact Britannica shares some of the most bizarre facts we can find.
This Time in History
In these videos, find out what happened this month (or any month!) in history.

Student Portal
Britannica is the ultimate student resource for key school subjects like history, government, literature, and more.
COVID-19 Portal
While this global health crisis continues to evolve, it can be useful to look to past pandemics to better understand how to respond today.
100 Women
Britannica celebrates the centennial of the Nineteenth Amendment, highlighting suffragists and history-making politicians.
Saving Earth
Britannica Presents Earth’s To-Do List for the 21st Century. Learn about the major environmental problems facing our planet and what can be done about them!
SpaceNext50
Britannica presents SpaceNext50, From the race to the Moon to space stewardship, we explore a wide range of subjects that feed our curiosity about space!

Источник