hard labor

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Plus, there was no getting around the fact that Ernesto was getting older, less desirable for hard labor.

From Slate • Jan. 27, 2026

After the war, Faÿ was sentenced to a lifetime of hard labor, but he escaped from prison in 1951 dressed in ecclesiastical costume, with the help of—here one reaches for the phrase “incredible but true”—Toklas.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 14, 2025

Someone who appreciates hard labor and thrills to the sight of heavy machinery.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 27, 2024

At first condemned to hard labor, Wenjie catches the eye of the architects of a nearby scientific project run by the government.

From New York Times • Mar. 21, 2024

The captain saw a ship breaker, tattooed with work stamps and scarred with hard labor.

From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi