Work Definition
- Engaged in labor; working:
at work on a new project.
- In operation:
inflationary forces at work in the economy.
- In preparation; under development:
has a novel in the works.
- Without a job; unemployed.
- To perform labor or duties, as on a specified project:
put in work on the plastering.
- To engage in double-dealing; be duplicitous.
Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Work
- at work
- in the works
- out of work
- put in work
- work both sides of the street
- work like a charm
- work (one's) fingers to the bone
- at work
- get the works
- give someone the works
- in the works
- make short work of
- out of work
- shoot the works
- the works
- work in
- work off
- work on
- work out
- work over
- work up
Origin of Work
-
From Old English weorc, worc, from Proto-Germanic *werkÄ…, from Proto-Indo-European *wérǵom; akin to Old Frisian werk, wirk, Old Saxon werk, Dutch werk, German Werk, Old High German werc, werah, Icelandic verk, Swedish verk, Danish værk, Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐍅𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌺𐌹 (gawaúrki), Ancient Greek ἔργον (érgon, “work") (from ϝέργον (wergon)), Avestan 𐬬𐬆𐬭𐬆𐬰 (vÉ™rÉ™z, “to work, to perform"), Armenian Õ£Õ¸Ö€Õ® (gorc, “work"), Albanian argëtoj (“entertain, reward, please"). English cognates include bulwark, energy, erg, georgic, liturgy, metallurgy, organ, surgeon, wright.
From Wiktionary
-
From Old English wyrÄ‹an, from Proto-Germanic *wurkijanÄ… (“to work"), from Proto-Indo-European *werǵ- (“to work"). Cognate with Old Frisian werka, wirka, Old Saxon wirkian, Low German warken, Dutch werken, Old High German wurken (German wirken, werken and werkeln), Old Norse yrkja and orka, (Swedish yrka and orka), Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌺𐌾𐌰𐌽 (waurkjan).
From Wiktionary
-
Middle English from Old English weorc werg- in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
Find Similar Words
Find similar words to work using the buttons below.