labor
Usage
What are other ways to say labor?
Labor particularly denotes hard manual work: backbreaking labor; arduous labor. Drudgery suggests continuous, dreary, and dispiriting work, especially of a menial or servile kind: the drudgery of household tasks. Toil suggests wearying or exhausting labor: toil that breaks down the worker's health. Work is the general word and may apply to exertion that is either easy or hard: fun work; heavy work.
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.
There is a “thick, mostly invisible layer of human labor holding the whole thing together,” the report said.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 12, 2026
But if their skills broadly match the population, it will likely have little impact on productivity or labor shortages.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
But despite the jump in inflation expectations, signs of higher energy costs feeding through to broader price pressures so far look limited given the frail economic outlook and growing distress within the U.K. labor market.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
The labor minister called for “new rules for distribution through social dialogue.”
From Barron's • Jun. 11, 2026
The motel room was small, like the cabins we lived in at the cotton labor camps.
From "Breaking Through" by Francisco Jiménez
Vocabulary lists containing labor
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Labor Day Lexicon: Words That Put You To Work
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Working Together: The Language of Unions
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