Word for boring job

To emphasise that the work is boring and without reward, consider one of:

Grunt work: work that is menial and thankless. During the summer, I earned money doing grunt work. I did all of the grunt work on the project, but my boss got all of the credit. The Free Dictionary

Grind: to do tedious, laborious, and sometimes menial work. The Free Dictionary

The latter has some nice idioms: back to the grind (going back to work after a break or vacation), daily grind (a tedious daily routine/job), grind away [at a job] (e.g. «he had to grind away for years at redecorating the old mansion»). You sometimes also see grind work and on your grind.

If you want to emphasise the ongoing physical difficulty of the work, and the exhaustion it can cause, toil (which can be used both as noun and verb) would be a good choice. The fact the work is mundane is often implied, but it isn’t so explicit.

Toil: hard and continuous work; exhausting labor or effort. Dictionary.com

To emphasise that the work is continuous and unrelenting, consider working like a dog or (a common metaphor) being on the treadmill (which particularly hints at how one feels little sense of progress or having «got anywhere»).

Work like a dog (UK also work like a Trojan): to work very hard. You can work like a ​dog and still not make ​ends ​meet.
Cambridge Online

Treadmill: a monotonous routine or set of tasks. The Free Dictionary

Предложение	Перевод
Is chemistry a boring subject?	Химия — скучный предмет?
It’s boring to wait for a train.	Ждать поезда скучно.
I hope I’m not boring you.	Надеюсь, что я тебе не надоедаю.
Life is boring in a small village.	Жизнь скучна в маленькой деревеньке.
Am I boring you?	Я тебе надоел?
It gets boring after a while.	Со временем это становится скучным.
Recently, everything seems boring to me.	В последнее время мне всё кажется скучным.
Today is a boring day.	Сегодня скучный день.
TV’s boring today.	Сегодняшнее телевидение очень скучное.
It’s boring to stay at home.	Дома сидеть скучно.
You’re boring me!	Мне с тобой скучно.
I have a boring job.	У меня скучная работа.
This book is too boring for me.	Эта книга слишком скучна для меня.
«Gee, it sure is boring around here!» «You’ve got to be kidding.» «Yes!» «Good.»	«Эх, до чего же здесь скучно!» — «Да ты небось шутишь». — «Да!» — «Вот и славно».
Gee, it sure is boring around here!	Эх, здесь у вас так скучно!
It’s a boring word.	Это скучное слово.
This is probably the most boring book in the world.	Это, вероятно, самая скучная книга в мире.
What gets me is having to do the same boring job, all day every day.	Меня добивает то, что я ежедневно должен делать однообразную скучную работу весь день.
And she said that it’s a rather boring movie.	Еще она сказала, что это было довольно скучный фильм.
And it’s a very boring bridge, as you can see.	Очень скучный мост, как вы можете видеть.
God, he is so boring.	Джоплин. — Боже, он такой нудный.
I think his novel is boring.	Мне кажется, что его роман скучный.
Listen, man, we’ll put the boring stuff back in too.	Слушай, друг, мы вернем скучный материал тоже.
Its boring blue and you’re not boring blue.	Скучный синий, а ты не скучный синий.
Smooth rides make for boring stories.	Ровные дороги бывают лишь в самых скучных рассказах…
Maybe things that men like are boring to women.	Может быть то, что нравится мужчинам, женщины считают скучным.
It’s so… boring you probably forgot.	Ну, это так скучно, что я, наверное, забыл.
I just think talking about work’s boring.	Я всего лишь думаю, что говорить о работе скучно.
I’m going bowling like boring people.	Я иду в боулинг, как обычные скучные люди.
Even when we have secret lives, we’re boring.	Даже когда у нас есть тайная жизнь, мы все равно скучные.
Aria took some boring picture class and Spencer went to college.	Ария ходила на скучные занятия по фотографии, а Спенсер ездила в колледж.
Someone pretentious, boring… pie-less.	В кого-то притворного, скучного… Пирого не любящего.
You keep it boring, String.	Пусть им с нами будет скучно, Стринг.
All we do is boring, old history.	Все, что мы читаем — скучная и древняя история.
That’s another word for boring.	Что по другому называется «скука смертная».
Kubiak just got a lot less boring.	Кубиак только что стал не таким уж и скучным.
I avoid my mother because she’s boring.	Я избегаю свою мать, потому что она — скучный человек.
I’m boring you to tears.	Вам так со мной скучно, что вы аж плакать готовы.

How would you answer if someone were to ask you what the most boring jobs in the world were? You would probably look back to your youth and think that working at a supermarket or being employed at a cannery was perhaps the worst experience of your life. And you would probably be right. However, when you think long and hard about the question, you can generate a long list of jobs that are even more tedious, sterile and mind-numbing. Imagine if this were your career.

We’ve compiled a list of the 30 most boring jobs in the world.

You might need to grab a cup of coffee before you start going through this list, though – we wouldn’t want you to fall asleep!

1. Project manager

You might think that the role of a project manager is to walk up to employees’ cubicles, coffee up in hand, and inform personnel in a slow tone that they’re going to need them to come in on Saturday. The project manager does so much more, though, like ensuring the assignments get done on time and making the team members look like a million dollars. Oh, and trying to look busy when everything is done ahead of time.

2. Telephone customer service representative

Imagine being berated every day over the telephone by irate customers. Well, that’s the life for eight hours a day for telephone customer service representatives who are cussed out and threatened because the consumer didn’t know how to turn on the computer. At first, it can be upsetting. But by the eighth time you are called the worst names in the book, it gets a little tedious.

3. Sales associate

Why do shoppers think sales associates create the company’s policy? It’s absurd to think that someone making minimum wage and folding sweaters or dusting shelves dictates what the business does or does not do. That said, sometimes employees may welcome some good old-fashioned tussling after filling in slips and organising a shelf.

4. Security guard

Security guards may think that a shift could quickly metastasise into Die Hard. However, for the most part, the role of a security guard is killing time due to boredom, particularly during graveyard shifts. Staring at computer monitors, accepting packages and feasting on doughnuts isn’t exactly John McClane.

5. Waste collector

Rubbish in and rubbish out. No, this is not the description of Hollywood movies – it is the daily task of a waste collector. It’s not exactly the most exciting job since you are only removing rubbish from a bin to a truck – and then arriving to the same property a week later to do the same thing.

6. Factory worker

Be it standing at an assembly line or putting together children’s toys, working at a factory is physically taxing, but it’s also one of the most boring jobs in the world. This is the case for most repetitive manual labour positions: performing the same task repeatedly can lead to pain in your back and boredom in your soul.

7. Lift operator

A lift operator can be fun the first few times you operate a mountain chair lift. However, the longer you work a lift, the novelty eventually wears off. After a bit of time, you realise that all you are doing is loading and unloading lifts. Is it the worst job in the world? Hardly. But it isn’t exactly something that stimulates your little grey cells.

8. Truck driver

For people who are confined to a desk job for 8 to 10 hours a day, the position of a truck driver can seem fresh and exciting. Indeed, you’re traveling the country and seeing new sights every day. As time goes by, the route becomes the same and the pressure of sitting on your bum for 14 hours seems less appealing. The only difference between a desk jockey and a trucker is that the latter operates a vehicle.

9. Dishwasher

The dishwashing profession is a job you take out of necessity. Nobody expects it to be glamour that will lead to a six-figure income. But even with the bar set as low as possible, a dishwasher is one of those boring jobs that make you want to become a Buddhist monk, sitting on a frigid mountain with a wet blanket and trying to use your mind to stay warm.

10. Parking lot attendant

Unfortunately, not every visitor will be driving a Lamborghini or a 1967 Shelby Mustang GT 500. For the most part, a parking lot attendant will be forced to drive a patron’s Honda Civic or Ford Escape from the restaurant entrance to the back of a parking lot.

11. Sign holder

Five-dollar footlongs! Shoe repair! Buy insurance here!

When a candidate applies for this job, they should not expect anything more from this position than simply what the employment title states: holding a sign.

12. Pork scratching spotter

What does a pork scratching spotter even do? For five days a week and eight hours a day, your responsibility will be to ensure no hairy pork scratchings make it into the packaging. That’s it. At least your employer can let you have a bit of pork for lunch, right?

13. Soil infiltration tester

Step aside watching paint dry. Here is perhaps one of the next most boring jobs: soil infiltration testing. This involves watching water infiltrate soil through a pie and measuring how many sinks per hour.

14. Computer programmer

A computer programmer makes a nice chunk of change each year, working for some of the biggest companies in the world. But just because you earn a handsome paycheque, it doesn’t mean you have the most exciting position in the world. In fact, how computer programmers survive this job for 20 or 30 years is amazing, considering they stare at a screen and a digital language every day.

15. Data entry coder

If you ever worked in a call centre, you may have wished that you were back on the phones and not completing data entry coding. This is ranked as one of the most boring jobs in the world for a reason: you input information from a sheet of paper to a computer screen. That’s it. That’s the job.

16. Transcriptionist

Writing down what someone is saying verbatim? That’s a paddlin’. In all seriousness, a transcriptionist, depending on the field they’re employed in, can earn a decent living. This does not remove the fact that it is a repetitious profession unless the people speaking are sharing information about a galactic federation or the next big stock.

17. Cashier

Like sales associates, cashiers are on the frontline handling a perturbed public. But that is the least of their problems since cashiers’ only task is to take money from the customer and place it in the register or operate the POS system.

18. Telemarketer

A telemarketer is lucky to generate at least one sale per shift. The entire four-, six- or eight-hour shift consists of dialling numbers and being hung up on or rejected by the person on the other end of the phone. It is a Sisyphean tragedy, one that is also quite vulgar since you’re upsetting the person’s dinner.

19. Legal assistant

Unfortunately, the legal profession is not an episode of Law and Order. It’s more like watching a snail venture from one destination to the next. Unless you are the district attorney or you are working on a case against Big Pharma, legal jobs can be rather hebetudinous.

20. Online captcha typist

Is online captcha typing ethical? We’ll leave that up to you, but thousands of desperate freelancers will take on the role of captcha typing for bots looking to evade this security apparatus. It is also one that is remarkably boring since your only task is to type funny-looking characters into a database. Now do this hundreds of times. If you choose to rip out your hair, we’d understand.

21. Technical writer

If you’ve ever read an IKEA instruction manual and then gotten into a fight with your spouse, you now know who to direct your anger at: the technical writer. The good news is that technical writers command excellent fees. The bad news is that it’s an overly complicated and dull occupation that attempts to simplify an intricate process of putting together bookshelves or hiding details that your smartphone emits ample amounts of radiation.

22. Pharmacist

It’s true: pharmacists always look busy behind the counter. But they’re not discovering a magical cure by experimenting with various compounds. Instead, they’re filling prescriptions, completing paperwork and ensuring they’re complying with government rules. This is a job that pays well, but is it something you could envision doing for 30 years?

23. Compliance officer

Speaking of compliance…

A compliance officer consists of making sure your company or office is following the rules and regulations laid out by either the government or the corporation. You’ve heard the expression of reading your list and checking it twice. Well, a compliance officer reads a list, checks it twice – and three times, and four times, and five times every day of the workweek.

24. Olympic swimming lifeguard

Are Olympic swimming lifeguards necessary? Aren’t they superfluous? Well, not according to the Olympic committees who keep these trained men and women on the sidelines to rescue some of the world’s fastest and most trained swimmers from, uh, drowning?

25. Building doorman

Accepting packages, opening the doors for rude tenants, and answering the telephone. Like a security guard, a building doorman is essentially holding the fort. But good luck trying to be a doorman in the middle of the night – you’ll need a few cups of coffee to stay alert. You never know when somebody may leave their apartments to enjoy some Chinese takeout!

26. Queen’s Guard

Sure, the Queen’s Guards are sublime tourist attractions. Everyone has a little bit of fun with them. But aside from the novelty of appealing to tourists’ worst tendences, your job is to merely stand outside of Buckingham Palace for several hours a day.

27. Cannery line worker

One apple good. One apple bad. That’s how you could explain what a cannery line worker does. The employee monitors apples all day long and transfers the good ones to one beltline and the bad ones to another. No matter how much you love apples, this can be excruciatingly exhausting for the sheer amount of boredom this inflicts.

28. Painter

It would be great if you could apply your artistry skills to this employment opportunity. Unfortunately, however, households would not appreciate your rendition of Edvard Munch’s The Scream or Cassius Marcellus Coolidge’s Dogs Playing Poker on their walls. So, because of this, every day all you do is paint the wall. It’s a good thing you don’t have to watch it dry!

29. Movie theatre attendant

Ripping up tickets and cleaning up popcorn for cash may be a great job for a teenager. But doing it after college can be draining, both physically and mentally. And there are only so many times that you can watch the end credits for a Hollywood blockbuster that may or may not have cut scenes.

30. Substitute teacher

For a moment, think back to your school days. Did you ever learn anything when a substitute teacher was around? If so, it would be a rare occasion. The substitute teacher would take attendance, ensure you’re in your seats and request that you re-read chapters four to six in your geography textbooks (which nobody did). For the remainder of the period, the substitute teacher would sit at their desk and prevent mischief from running wild. How fun!

When you’re choosing a career or a temporary job to put groceries on the table, your primary objectives are salary, benefits, hours and potential career advancement. Do you stop to think about how exciting or boring the job would be? Probably not.

But while most jobs possess some level of predictability, repetition and monotony, some positions are slightly worse than others. And this could be something you can consider as you search for a career and identify your interests.

Can you think of any other boring jobs? Let us know in the comments section below!

This article is an updated version of an earlier article originally published on 4 November 2016.

Here is a list of ten world’s most boring jobs that will help those who can get bored easily while doing something. Such people must be conscious while considering a career in these job types. We all know a successful career startup plays a very important and significant part in all of our lives.

Have you found yourself stuck somewhere where you don’t want to be? Well, there are a lot of individuals who feel the same. We’ve always thought that if it doesn’t interest us, then it’s boring. Some jobs are absolutely frustrating. Let’s have a look.

Image Courtesy to Katemangostar / Freepik

1. Accounts Manager

Image courtesy of adamr at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

These people play with numbers, which might sound interesting. However, imagine working with numbers day in and day out – boring! Being in the field of accounting is all about dealing with numbers round the clock. You need to be self-motivated and optimistic to swim through the tides.

2. Secretary

Image courtesy of Ambro at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Being a secretary isn’t easy! You have to be on your toes. Your boss needs to be attended whenever he/she feels like it. If you make friends with your boss you might get spared sometimes. “Do this!” “Do that!” is what you’ll hear all the time otherwise (plus you’ll be the only person in your department!).

3. Customer Care Representative

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

So you are a customer care representative? Talking to customers, resolving their queries, answering them promptly, keeping them satisfied is what you have to do? Interesting? When you have to do that again and again? Still sounds interesting? People working in this profile have complained about monotonous lifestyles. Choose wisely!

4. Bus Driver

Image courtesy to Dave Collier at Flickr

Travelling is one thing, driving is another! As a bus driver you have to drive on the same route every day. Your job is to drive for hours staring at the road which may be quite tedious (with few things to keep them entertained and motivated).

5. Data Entry Operator

Image courtesy of Goldy at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Working on a computer, feeding loads of data does sound easy – it isn’t until the number start looking repetitive. It becomes monotonous after some days. The only thing that motivates is the compensation.  

6. Security Guard

Image courtesy to Memaxmarz at Flickr

A security guard’s job is to take care of the property. If you are a security guard, you’ll be looking at the CCTV camera monitor for hours and do patrolling around the premises. Usually people doing this type of work feel bored and lack motivation.

7. House Keeping

Image courtesy to Les Roches International School of Hotel Management at Flickr

Considered one of the most frustrating jobs in the world, housekeeping is not fun. We all love cleanliness and want everything clean around us. Housekeeping is tedious and boring. Doing the same rounds every day, using the same equipments is certainly not interesting.  

8. Mine Engineer

Image courtesy to FitimSelimi at wikimedia

This is not a surprise entry. Being a mine engineer is tough. You have to work for hours in a place which is not only hot but dangerous as well. On top of that, you have to work in a confined area which can become very frustrating. Keeping yourself focused working in a difficult environment is tough.

9. Nursery Teacher

Image courtesy to Vincenzo Mainardi at wikimedia

Love kids? Sure we do too! But what if you have to take care of more than 10-20 of them, all at the same time? Being a teacher isn’t that creative; you have to follow a syllabus and teach the same things every day throughout the year (till you are a teacher). Seems manageable? You also have to assess their aptitude through periodic tests. If this doesn’t sound boring, then you are born to be a teacher.

10. Marketing Executive

Image courtesy of stockimages at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

As a marketing executive, you’ll be responsible for manage promotions and advertising. This job involves a lot of planning, decision making and developing strategies to meet sales targets, research market behavior and a lot more. If all these sound great, don’t forget periodic management meetings and pushing people to achieve goals. According to a survey, lack to direction in such jobs lead to dissatisfaction, making it boring.

There might me various reasons to state a particular job boring. However it also depends what your career goals are. Many of us want to have a 9 to 5 job. You have to get a reality check. We have mentioned jobs that are boring but that does not mean you can’t take steps to make your work interesting. Try to have a positive attitude and find ways to make it interesting. If still you find it boring, it doesn’t harm to follow your passion! 

1. I

2. III

1) find smth., smb. find a misplaced letter находить /отыскивать/ затерявшееся письме и т. д.’, I ran to find a doctor я побежал за врачом; I don’t know where to find time не знаю, где взять время; find a new method открывать новый метод и т.д; find the means изыскивать /находить/ средства и т. д.; where shall I find the money? где мне put the book back where you found it положите книгу обратно на место; leave the windows (the papers, her things, etc.) as one finds them оставить окна и т. д. как есть; we must leave everything as we find it мы ничего не должны трогать; take us as you find us принимайте нас такими, какие мы есть; the book found very few readers книга не была популярна у читателей, на книгу почти не было спроса; the anchor found bottom якорь коснулся дна; the bullet found its mark пуля попала в цель

2) find smth. find the sum находить /определять, вычислять/ сумму и т. д.; find the sum of several numbers определить /вычислить/ сумму нескольких чисел и т. д.’, what did you find the total? какой у вас получился итог?

3. IV

find smth., smb., in some manner find smth., smb. easily легко и т. д. находить что-л., кого-л.; find smth., smb. somewhere find one’s way home находить дорогу домой и т. д.’, find smb. in I can’t find my keys anywhere [я] нигде не могу отыскать свой ключи; find smth., smb. at some time at last he found his way наконец он выбрался на [правильную] дорогу; at last he finds a wife for himself наконец он нашел себе жену

4. V

1) find smb. smth. find her a taxi найти ей такой и т. д.; I found him a job я подыскал ему работу

2) find smb., smth. smb., smth. find him a trustworthy man считать /находить/ его надежным человеком и т. д.’, I found him an agreeable person он показался мне приятным человеком, у меня сложилось о нем мнение как о приятном человеке; I find it my duty я считаю это своим долгом

5. VI

1) find smb. in some state find smb. gloomy застать кого-л. в мрачном и т. д. настроении; I came and found her ill я пришел и увидел, что она больна; find smb. dead обнаружить, что кто-л. умер /мертв/, найти кого-л. мертвым, не застать кого-л. в живых

2) find smb., smth. possessing some quality find smb. funny находить /считать/ кого-л. смешным и т. д.; I find him strange today он мне кажется странным сегодня; find smb. guilty признавать кого-л. виновным и т.д., find smth. easy находить /считать/ что-л. легким и т. д.; I find the weather pleasant today сегодня мне погода нравится; find it difficult to understand him трудно и т. д. понять его и т. д.; we may find it necessary to leave early нам может быть придется рано уйти

6. VII

1) find smth. to do smth. find time to read находить время [.чтобы] читать и т. д., he found nothing new to say он ничего нового не мог сказать; find the case to contain a pearl necklace обнаружить, что в футляре лежит жемчужное ожерелье

2) find smth. to possess some quality find smth. to be true находить /убеждаться в том/, что это правильно /правда/ и т. д.

7. VIII

find smb. doing smth. find the girl waiting обнаружить /увидеть/. что девушка ждет и т. д.; I found myself disagreeing я вдруг [неожиданно для себя] начал спорить; понял, что я не согласен

8. IX

find smth., smb. in some state find the room locked (the event forgotten, the glass broken, the book borrowed, them gone, him arrested, her beaten up, the child taken from him, etc. обнаружить, что комната заперта и т. д.; find one self surrounded by children оказаться окруженным детьми; I found myself obliged to leave мне пришлось уйти

9. XI

2)

be found smth. he was found a situation out of tow; ему нашли работу за городом; be found in some state he was found wounded когда его нашли, увидели /обнаружили/. что он ранен и т. д.; be found somewhere a dagger was found on him when he was searched при обыске у него обнаружили кинжал; be found with smth. that is the only fault to be found with him это его единственный недостаток; it is not the only fault to be found with the play это отнюдь не единственный недостаток пьесы

3)

be found possessing some quality be found useful /of use быть признанным /считаться/ полезным и т. д.; he was found guilty его признали виновным; be found that it has been found that… было установлено, что…

10. XVIII

11. XXI1

1) find smth. in smth. find mistakes in a composition находить ошибки в сочинении и т. д.; find ten stamps in that drawer найти десять марок в том ящике; find smth. in some state find the room in perfect order находить комнату в полном порядке и т. д. find smth. for smb., smth. find a post for him найти ему место / должность / и т. д.; find smth. after smth. find smth. after a careful search найти / обнаружить / что-л. после тщательных поисков

2) find smth. to smth. find an answer to the problem выяснить / найти / ответ на вопрос и т. д.

3) find smb., smth. in / at, on / some place find smb. at home застать / найти / кого-л. дома и т. д.; I found him still in bed я застал его еще в постели; find oneself in hospital оказаться в больнице и т. д.

4) find its / one’s / way to smth. the river finds its way to the sea река впадает в море; how did it find its way into print? как это попало в печать?; I’ll find my way out of these difficulties я сумею найти выход из этих трудностей

5) find smth., smb. in smth., smb. find expression in smth. найти свое выражение в чём-л.; find a true friend in her обрести истинного друга в ней и т. д.; I can find по faults in him я не замечаю у него никаких недостатков; find smth. with smb. find happiness with smb. обрести счастье с кем-л.; find smth. for smth. find no reason for smth. не видеть / не находить / [никаких] причин для чего-л.; I can find по excuse for his behaviour я не представляю, как можно оправдать его поведение

12. XXII

find smth. in doing smth. find pleasure in gardening с удовольствием заниматься садоводством и т. д.

13. XXV

find [that]… find that I was mistaken понять, что я ошибался; find that he could not swim обнаружить, что он не умеет плавать; this letter, I find, arrived yesterday письмо, я вижу / я обнаружил /, пришло вчера

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