Translation of "work" - English-Spanish dictionary

work

verb uk ​ /wɜːk/ us ​ /wɜrk/

A1 to do a job that you get money for

trabajar
Helen works for a computer company.
He works as a waiter in an Italian restaurant.

A2 If a machine or piece of equipment works, it is not broken.

funcionar
The fridge isn’t working.

B1 If something works, it is successful.

funcionar
Her plan to get rid of me didn’t work.
work your fingers to the bone

› to work extremely hard, especially for a long time

matarse a trabajar
She worked her fingers to the bone to provide a home and food for seven children.

Phrasal verb(s)

work out
work something out
noun uk ​ /wɜːk/ us ​ /wɜrk/

A1 [ no plural ] something you do to get money

trabajo
Has she found any work yet?

A1 [ no plural ] the place where you go to do your job

trabajo
He had an accident at work.

A2 [ no plural ] the activities that you do at school, for your job, etc.

trabajo
Do you have a lot of work to do?

B1 [ no plural ] the effort needed to do something

trabajo
Painting that room was hard work.
be out of work

B1 not having a job

estar desempleado
I’ve been out of work for the last six months.

› a painting, book, piece of music, etc.

obra
the complete works of Shakespeare
get/set to work

› to start doing something

ponerse a trabajar
I need to get to work on my essay.
get to work

› to start doing something

ponerse a trabajar
I need to get to work on my essay.
have your work cut out

› to have something very difficult to do

pasarlas canutas
It’s a demanding job – she’s going to have her work cut out for her.

(Translation of “work” from the Cambridge English-Spanish Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

work

noun /wəːk/

› effort made in order to achieve or make something

trabajo
He has done a lot of work on this project

› employment

trabajo
I cannot find work in this town.

› a task or tasks; the thing that one is working on

trabajo
Please clear your work off the table.

› a painting, book, piece of music etc

obra
the works of Van Gogh / Shakespeare/Mozart
This work was composed in 1816.

› the product or result of a person’s labours/labors

trabajo
His work has shown a great improvement lately.

› one’s place of employment

trabajo
He left (his) work at 5.30 p.m.
I don’t think I’ll go to work tomorrow.
-work suffix

› (the art of making) goods of a particular material

trabajo de
He learns woodwork at school
This shop sells basketwork.

› parts of something, eg a building, made of a particular material

obra de
The stonework/woodwork/paintwork needs to be renewed.
workable adjective

› (of a plan) able to be carried out

práctico
a workable solution.
worker noun

› a person who works or who is employed in an office, a factory etc

trabajador
office workers
car workers.

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

obrero

› a person who works (hard etc)

trabajador
He’s a slow/hard worker.
works noun singular or plural

› a factory etc

fábrica
The steelworks is/are closed for the holidays.
work-basket noun ( work-box)

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

costurero, cesto de labor
workbook noun

› a book of exercises usually with spaces for answers.

cuaderno de ejercicios
workforce noun

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

mano de obra
The factory has a workforce of about 300 people.
working class noun

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

proletariado
working day noun ( work-day)

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

día laborable

› the period of actual labour in a normal day at work

jornada de trabajo
My working day is eight hours long.
working hours noun plural

› the times of day between which one is at work

horas de trabajo
Normal working hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
working party noun (plural working parties, work parties) ( work party)

› a group of people gathered together (usually voluntarily) to perform a particular physical task

grupo de trabajo
They organized a work party to clear the canal of weeds.
working week noun

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

semana laborable
workman noun (plural workmen)

› a man who does manual work

obrero; obrera
the workmen on a building site.
workmanlike adjective

› suitable to a good workman

profesional, competente
a workmanlike attitude.

› well performed

bien hecho
a workmanlike job.
workmanship noun

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

habilidad
We were admiring the superb workmanship of the sculpture.
workmate noun

› one of the people who work in the same place of employment as oneself

compañero de trabajo
Her workmates teased her about being the boss’s favourite.
workout noun

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

entreno
Do these exercises as part of you daily workout.
workplace noun

› the office, factory, or other place where people work

lugar de trabajo
sexual discrimination in the workplace.
worksheet noun

› a piece of paper that has questions and exercises for students to do.

hoja de ejercicios
workshop noun

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

taller

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

taller
workstation noun

› a desk and a computer for one person to work at in an office.

oficina

› a computer that is part of a computer network in a place such as an office.

oficina
at work

› working

trabajando
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

ponerse a trabajar, ponerse manos a la obra
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

empezar a hacer
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

costarle a uno mucho trabajo hacer algo
You’ll have your work cut out to beat the champion.
in working order

› (of a machine etc) operating correctly

funcionando, en marcha, en condiciones
Despite its age, the clock was in perfect working order.
out of work adjective

› having no employment

parado
He’s been out of work for months.
work of art noun

› a painting, sculpture etc.

obra de arte
work off phrasal verb

› to get rid of (something unwanted or unpleasant) by taking physical exercise etc

desahogarse
He worked off his anger by running round the garden six times.
work out phrasal verb

› to solve or calculate correctly

calcular
I can’t work out how many should be left.

› to come to a satisfactory end

solucionar, resolver
Don’t worry – it will all work out (in the end).

› to perform physical exercises

hacer ejercicio
She works out every day.
work up phrasal verb

› to excite or rouse gradually

exaltar, acalorar, poner nervioso, emocionar
She worked herself up into a fury
(adjective worked-up) Don’t get so worked-up!

› to raise or create

llegar a tener
I just can’t work up any energy/appetite/enthusiasm today.
work up to phrasal verb

› to progress towards and prepare for

preparar el terreno para
Work up to the difficult exercises gradually.
work wonders

› to produce marvellous results

hacer milagros
These pills have worked wonders for my rheumatism.

(Translation of “work” from the PASSWORD English-Spanish Dictionary © 2014 K Dictionaries Ltd)

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