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English (US)

Meaning of work in English

work
noun
us
/wɝːk/ uk
/wɜːk/

work noun (ACTIVITY)

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A1 [ U ]
an activity, such as a job, that a person uses physical or mental effort to do, usually for money:
do work I have so much work to do.
hard work Carrying heavy loads around all day is hard work.
start/finish work What time do you start/finish work?
Aileen does most of the work around the house.
What sort of work are you experienced in?
She tends to wear quite dressy clothes for work.
Roger's work involves a lot of traveling.
A2 [ U ]
the material used by someone at work, or what they produce:
I'll have to take this work home with me and finish it there.
All the furniture is the work of residents here.
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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Work, working and the workplace
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work noun (PLACE)

A1 [ U ]
a place where a person goes specially to do their job:
to work Do you have far to travel to work each day?
at work Thousands of people are seriously injured at work every year.
for work When does she leave for work?
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Work, working and the workplace
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work noun (CREATION)

B2 [ C ]
something created as a result of effort, especially a painting, book, or piece of music:
work by The museum has many works by Picasso as well as other modern painters.
the poetic works of Tagore
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Products & producers
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work noun (SURGERY)

[ U ] informal
surgery (= a medical operation) that is done to improve someone's appearance:
She denies having had any cosmetic surgery, but I think she's definitely had some work done.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Medical treatment: surgery
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work noun (EVERYTHING)

the works informal
everything that you might want or expect to find in a particular situation:
The bridegroom was wearing a morning suit, gloves, top hat - the works.
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work noun (FACTORY)

works [ C ] plural works
an industrial building, especially one where a lot of people are employed:
a steel/iron works
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work noun (MACHINE)

works [ plural ]
the parts of a machine, especially those that move:
If you take the back off this clock, you can see its/the works.
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work noun (PHYSICS)

[ U ]   physics   specialized
force multiplied by distance moved
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Physics: energy, force & power
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Grammar

Work (noun)
Work is an uncountable noun when it means something we do that takes an effort, often as part of a job or for study: …
Work as an uncountable noun
Work is an uncountable noun when it means something we do that takes an effort, often as part of a job or for study: …
Work as a countable noun
Work as a countable noun means something created, especially a book or painting or piece of music or sculpture: …

Idioms

all work and no play (makes Jack a dull boy)
be at work
be in work
be out of work
get/set to work
have your work cut out (for you)
in the works
work
verb
us
/wɝːk/ uk
/wɜːk/

work verb (HAVE EFFECT)

B1 [ I usually + adv/prep ]
to be effective or successful:
work in practice Her idea for reorganizing the department will never work in practice.
work in The pills will start to work in a few minutes.
work for Some people think I'm weird for doing meditation, but it works for me and that's all that matters.
work well Arguably, the monarchy worked well for many centuries.
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Performing a function
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work verb (DO JOB)

A1 [ I or T ]
to do a job, especially the job you do to earn money:
Where do you work?
work at He works at the hospital.
work as She worked as a cleaner at the hospital.
work for Mike works for a computer company.
work in I work in management training.
work with Do you have any experience of working with children who have learning difficulties?
It's not unusual for some businesspeople to work a 70 or sometimes an 80-hour week.
See also
work to rule (work-to-rule)
work out of something
to have a particular place as your place of work:
At that time, our New York staff was working out of a former warehouse in Lower Manhattan.
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[ T ]
to make a person or animal do a job:
work hard The instructors worked us very hard on the survival course.
Many of the animals were worked to death.
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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Work, working and the workplace
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work verb (OPERATE)

A2 [ I or T ]
If a machine or device works, it operates, especially correctly and without failure, and if you work it, you make it operate:
Our phone isn't working.
You need a team of about twelve people to work a furnace this size.
work on The pump works on (= uses) wind power.
work by The pump is worked by (= uses to operate) wind power.
get something to work I can't get the radio to work.
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SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Machines - Functioning
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work verb (SUCCEED IN BECOMING)

[ I or T, + adv/prep ]
to succeed gradually in becoming something or cause a person or thing to become something, either by making an effort or by making many small movements:
work your way up something He started as a technician and worked his way up through the company to become managing director.
work your way through something Eventually she worked her way through (= read) the huge amount of technical papers.
Vibration tends to make nuts and screws work themselves loose.
The screws had worked loose over time.
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Succeeding, achieving and fulfilling
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work verb (ARRANGE)

[ T ] informal
to arrange for something to happen, especially by not using official methods and/or by being smart:
work it I don't know how she worked it, but she retired at 50.
work things (out) Can we work things (out) so that there's always someone here to answer the phone during office hours?
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Planning, expecting and arranging
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work verb (SHAPE)

[ T ]
to shape, change, or process a substance:
Working iron requires higher temperatures than bronze.
work something into something Gently work the butter into the flour until there are no lumps left.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Patterns and shapes
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Idioms

work a treat
work like a charm
work wonders/miracles
work your fingers to the bone
work like a dog
work till/until you drop
work your way around to something

Phrasal verbs

work against/for someone
work at something
work something off
work on something
work on someone
work something out
work out
work someone out
work (something) out
work someone over
More phrasal verbs
work through something
work up something
work someone up
work (yourself) up to something
-work
suffix
us
/ -wɝːk/ uk
/ -wɜːk/
used to refer to work of a particular type:
homework
paperwork
used to refer to a skill or activity using a particular type of material:
Girls and boys study woodwork and metalwork at this school.
used to name things made of a particular material:
stonework
ironwork
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Types of employment
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(Definition of work from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

work | Intermediate English

work
verb
us
/wɜrk/

work verb (DO A JOB)

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[ I/T ]
to do a job, esp. a job you do to earn money:
[ T ] She works long hours.
[ T ] Richie worked the night shift.
[ I ] Designers worked with the director.
[ I ] Mike works for a computer company.
[ I ] Medics were working on him for an hour.
[ I ] She worked on the project with Luce.
[ I ] Anna works well with others.
[ I ] I have to work on Saturday.

work verb (PERFORM AS INTENDED)

[ I/T ]
to perform as intended or desired, or to cause something to do what it was intended to do:
[ I ] The medicine ought to work right away.
[ I ] Our plan worked perfectly.
[ T ] I don’t know how to work this computer.
[ T ] He knows how to work the system (= get what he wants from it).

work verb (HAVE EFFECT)

[ I always + adv/prep ]
(of a condition or fact) to have an effect, esp. one that either helps or causes difficulties:
Time was working against us.
Jimmie has a lot working in his favor.

work verb (MAKE OBJECT)

[ T ]
to shape something with your hands:
She carefully works the clay.

Idioms

work like a dog
work the land
work your way up
work wonders

Phrasal verbs

work someone/yourself up
work out
work out
work out something
work out something
work through something
work up something
work up to something
work
noun
us
/wɜrk/

work noun (FORCE)

[ U ]   physics
force used on an object multiplied by the distance it moves the object, measured in joules

work noun (PLACE)

[ U ]
the place where a person regularly goes to do his or her job:
I had to leave work early.
Does it take long to commute to work?

work noun (OBJECT)

[ C ]
an object produced as a result of effort, esp. something intended to be art:
The museum is showing works by 20th-century artists.

work noun (DO A JOB)

[ U ]
the use of effort to do or make something that has value, and for which you are usually paid:
outdoor/office/manual work
Steve’s out of work again (= not employed).

Idioms

at work
in the works
(Definition of work from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

work | Business English

work
verb
uk
/wɜːk/ us
Add to word list Add to word list
[ I or T ]   HR, WORKPLACE
to do a job, especially to earn money:
Do you work?
He works as a computer technician.
My brother works for a large American corporation.
How many people work at your company?
work full-time/part-time/from home
work an eight-hour day/hard/long hours
work in a bank/factory/an office
[ I ]
to spend time and effort doing something:
We were working on the presentation all night.
The two countries worked together on developing the technology.
Multinationals will have to work with governments to achieve the best balance between openness and security.
[ I ]
to try hard to achieve or improve something:
work at/on sth You need to work on your communication skills.
I'm not very confident on the phone, but I'm prepared to work at it.
be working towards sth Our firm is working towards being a paperless environment.
[ I ]
to be effective or successful:
The plan seemed to work well.
The current system isn't working, so we'll need to look at an alternative.
[ I ]   WORKPLACE, IT
if a machine or piece of equipment works, it operates as expected:
My computer isn't working.
I can't get this printer to work.
[ T ]   WORKPLACE, IT   informal
to operate a machine or piece of equipment:
He doesn't even know how to work a photocopier.
[ T ]   COMMERCE
to go around a particular area that you are responsible for, especially in a sales job:
His sales were better when he was working the London area.
[ I ]
to have a good or bad effect:
The terms they're offering don't work for us.
His poor command of English worked against him in the interview.
Her previous sales experience worked in her favour.
[ T ]
to change the shape of a material to make something else with it:
work leather/metal
work a mine
NATURAL RESOURCES
to dig for coal, minerals, etc.:
These men have been working the mines all their lives.
work sb hard
to make someone use a lot of effort:
He works his trainees really hard.
work it so (that) informal
to arrange for something to happen in a way that is useful for you:
I'm going to try and work it so I can spend the weekend in New York after the conference.
work the land formal
to prepare the soil to grow crops on it:
We're here to thank those who work the land to feed us.
work the system
to know how to deal with a system or organization to get the result you want:
People who know how to work the system can significantly reduce their tax bill.
work things out
to deal with a situation successfully, especially when there is a problem:
I'll try to work things out with our suppliers.
work your way up sth (also work your way up to sth)
to do a series of jobs at different levels in an organization until you reach a position at the top of the organization:
She joined the company as a sales rep but worked her way up to managing director.
work your way up the ladder/hierarchy/ranks I'd like to stay here and work my way up the audit career ladder.

Phrasal verbs

work out
work sth out
work sth up
work
noun [ U ]
uk
/wɜːk/ us
HR
the job that someone does, usually to earn money:
full-time/part-time work Many pensioners will have to consider part-time work to supplement their retirement plans.
find/get/look for work The government's initiative helps the unemployed find work.
He's been out of work for six months now.
permanent/regular/temporary work
paid/unpaid/voluntary work
badly paid/well-paid work
give up/go back to/return to work
WORKPLACE
a place, such as an office, a factory, etc., where someone goes to do their job:
The Managing Director always arrived at work early and stayed late.
She claimed her stress was the result of the bank's hostile work environment.
be at/go to/leave work What time do you go to work in the morning?
WORKPLACE
the responsibilities that are part of your job:
start/finish/stop work I don't finish work until 6.30 pm.
I need to take some time off work to look after my son.
Analysts refer to various sources of information to help them make investment decisions in their day-to-day work.
The government launched an inquiry into the work of the Monetary Policy Committee.
do/enjoy/hate your work
factory/manual/office work
administrative/clerical/secretarial work
WORKPLACE
the tasks that need to be completed:
do/produce/take on work The department can't take on any more work until this project is finished.
I always end up taking work home at the weekend.
the mental or physical effort involved in doing or achieving something:
The builders started work on the new offices last week.
carry out/put in work The whole team put in a lot of hard work to win the contract.
We need to set to work on reviewing our claims system.
The finance department has been hard at work on its year-end report.
Management still has a lot of work to do to ensure the company's future.
The committee's report was a very good piece of work.
good/hard work
innovative/major/outstanding work
works
[ plural ] UK
the activity of building or repairing something:
engineering/repair works The road was closed for essential repair works.
works
[ C ]   PRODUCTION
an industrial building where materials or goods are manufactured:
Residents protested about the waste produced by the nearby industrial works.
a chemical/gas/steel works
the works foreman/manager/supervisor
the works close down/open
have your work cut out for you informal
to have something very difficult to do:
The government has its work cut out for it trying to reduce the national deficit.
in the works
in the process of being planned or discussed:
Protesters claim the proposed cuts had been in the works for months.

See also

casual
contingent work
make-work
out of work
piecework
public works
welfare to work
work in progress
(Definition of work from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of work

work
He had to work out every day at 6 a.m. for the next two months.
From ESPN
That works out to an average of about 814 deportations a day.
From Washington Times
I look forward to working with you all again.
From MLive.com
On average, they say they would forego $8,087 per year to work for a clean-cut company.
From TIME
Of course, that only works well for the people who are deciding which is which.
From TIME
It was an overnight, 10-hour flight for a work trip.
From The Atlantic
I feel as if my body is working the way it is supposed to work!
From Huffington Post
How do they work out how to work together?
From Fast Company
I work with a lot of the caucus members.
From The Atlantic
Now, just a few months later, she has three other women working for her.
From Huffington Post
He says he's worked there for 22 years.
From NPR
You see how well it has worked out for them.
From TIME
I also work all day to give him everything he needs.
From CNN
Here's how to work with it--not against it.
From NBCNews.com
It's a lot of fun to work on a show like this.
From Los Angeles Times
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.

Collocations with work

work

These are words often used in combination with work.

Click on a collocation to see more examples of it.

arduous work
Even feeling and sight - faculties which we might think of as spontaneous, natural, unmediated - are the fruits of long and arduous work.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
assigned work
This is because those authorities which have assigned work to their own work forces cannot simply revise a specification to meet higher standards.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under the Open Parliament Licence v3.0
best-known work
His best-known work is his piano concerto which premiered in 1941.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
See all collocations with work
What is the pronunciation of work, -work?
 

Translations of work

in Chinese (Traditional)
行動, 工作, 勞動…
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in Chinese (Simplified)
行动, 工作，活儿, 劳动…
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in Spanish
trabajo, obra, cirugía estética…
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in Portuguese
trabalho, obra, cirurgia estética…
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in more languages
in Marathi
in Japanese
in Turkish
in French
in Catalan
in Dutch
in Tamil
in Hindi
in Gujarati
in Danish
in Swedish
in Malay
in German
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in Urdu
in Ukrainian
in Russian
in Telugu
in Arabic
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in Czech
in Indonesian
in Thai
in Vietnamese
in Polish
in Korean
in Italian
काम, कामाचे ठिकाण, कृती…
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（人）が働く, 勤めている, （機械など）が動く…
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çalışmak, işlemek, işe yaramak…
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travailler, fonctionner, marcher…
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treballar, funcionar, feina…
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werk, werken, (doen) werken…
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ஒரு வேலை போன்ற ஒரு செயல்பாடு, ஒரு நபர் செய்ய உடல் அல்லது மன முயற்சியைப் பயன்படுத்துகிறார், பொதுவாக பணத்திற்காக…
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काम, काम के लिए इस्तेमाल होने वाली सामग्री, या काम का नतीजा…
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કામ, નોકરી, કામ કરવું…
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arbejde, værk, arbejdsplads…
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arbete, jobb, grejor…
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kerja, pekerjaan, tugasan…
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die Arbeit, das Werk, arbeiten…
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jobbe, arbeide, virke…
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کام, کام (کام میں استعمال ہونے والا سامان یا وہ سامان جو تیار کیا جاتا ہے), کام پر (کام کرنے کی جگہ)…
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робота, труд, діло…
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работать, функционировать, срабатывать…
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పని, ఒక పని చేస్తున్న వ్యక్తి వాడే సరుకు/పదార్థం, లేక ఆ వ్యక్తి/వ్యక్తులు ఉత్పత్తి చేసేది…
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يَعْمَل, يَشْتَغَل, يَنْجَح…
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কাজ, কাজ (হাতে তৈরী), কাজ (চাকরীর জন্য যেখানে যেতে হয়)…
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práce, dílo, pracovat…
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pekerjaan, tugas, hasil karya…
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ความพยายามในการทำงาน, การจ้างงาน, หน้าที่การทำงาน…
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nỗ lực, công việc, nhiệm vụ…
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pracować, działać, udać się…
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일하다, 작동하다, 효과가 있다…
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lavorare, funzionare, avere successo…
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words phrase
wordsmith
wordy
wore
work
work (yourself) up to something phrasal verb
work a treat idiom
work against/for someone phrasal verb
work around

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