work - definition, thesaurus and related words from WordNet-Online

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Noun work has 7 senses

work - activity directed toward making or doing something; "she checked several points needing further work"
--₁ is a kind of activity
--₁ has particulars:

Derived forms: verb work₉, verb work₈, verb work₁, verb work₁₂

work, piece of work - a product produced or accomplished through the effort or activity or agency of a person or thing; "it is not regarded as one of his more memorable works"; "the symphony was hailed as an ingenious work"; "he was indebted to the pioneering work of John Dewey"; "the work of an active imagination"; "erosion is the work of wind or water over time"
--₂ is a kind of product, production
--₂ has particulars:

Derived forms: verb work₃, verb work₁

employment, work - the occupation for which you are paid; "he is looking for employment"; "a lot of people are out of work"
--₃ is a kind of occupation, business, job, line of work, line
--₃ has particulars:
coaching, coaching job; engagement, booking; seafaring, navigation, sailing; workload; piecework; service; telecommuting, teleworking; services; public service; paper route

Derived forms: verb work₁₂, verb work₂
study, work - applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject (especially by reading); "mastering a second language requires a lot of work"; "no schools offer graduate study in interior design"
--₄ is a kind of learning, acquisition
oeuvre, work, body of work - the total output of a writer or artist (or a substantial part of it); "he studied the entire Wagnerian oeuvre"; "Picasso's work can be divided into periods"
--₅ is a kind of end product, output
--₅ has particulars: writing

workplace, work - a place where work is done; "he arrived at work early today"
--₆ is a kind of geographic point, geographical point
--₆ has parts: locker room
--₆ has particulars:

work - (physics) a manifestation of energy; the transfer of energy from one physical system to another expressed as the product of a force and the distance through which it moves a body in the direction of that force; "work equals force times distance"
--₇ is a kind of energy

Verb work has 27 senses

work - exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity; "I will work hard to improve my grades"; "she worked hard for better living conditions for the poor"
Antonyms: idle, laze, slug, stagnate

Derived forms: noun worker₄, noun work₂, noun work₁, noun worker₁, noun worker₃
Sample sentence:
Sam and Sue work
work, do work - be employed; "Is your husband working again?"; "My wife never worked"; "Do you want to work after the age of 60?"; "She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money"; "She works as a waitress to put herself through college"

Derived forms: noun work₃, noun worker₁
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP
work, act - have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or expected; "The voting process doesn't work as well as people thought"; "How does your idea work in practice?"; "This method doesn't work"; "The breaks of my new car act quickly"; "The medicine works only if you take it with a lot of water"
--₃ is one way to succeed, win, come through, bring home the bacon, deliver the goods

Derived form: noun work₂
Sample sentences:
Something ----s
Something is ----ing PP
function, work, operate, go, run - perform as expected when applied; "The washing machine won't go unless it's plugged in"; "Does this old car still run well?"; "This old radio doesn't work anymore"
Sample sentence:
These cars won't work
work, work on, process - shape, form, or improve a material; "work stone into tools"; "process iron"; "work the metal"
--₅ is one way to transform, transmute, transubstantiate
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s something
exercise, work, work out - give a work-out to; "Some parents exercise their infants"; "My personal trainer works me hard"; "work one's muscles"
--₆ is one way to work, put to work
Sample sentence:
They work the animals
make, work - proceed along a path; "work one's way through the crowd"; "make one's way into the forest"
--₇ is one way to pass, go through, go across
Sample sentence:
They work up the hill
work - operate in a certain place, area, or specialty; "She works the night clubs"; "The salesman works the Midwest"; "This artist works mostly in acrylics"
--₈ is one way to work

Derived form: noun work₁
Sample sentence:
They work in the city
work - proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity; "work your way through every problem or task"; "She was working on her second martini when the guests arrived"; "Start from the bottom and work towards the top"
--₉ is one way to go, proceed, move

Derived form: noun work₁
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s PP
work - move in an agitated manner; "His fingers worked with tension"
--₁₀ is one way to move, displace
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s something
bring, work, play, wreak, make for - cause to happen or to occur as a consequence; "I cannot work a miracle"; "wreak havoc"; "bring comments"; "play a joke"; "The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area"
--₁₁ is one way to make, create
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
work, put to work - cause to work; "he is working his servants hard"
--₁₂ is one way to use, utilize, utilise, apply, employ

Derived forms: noun work₃, noun work₁
Sample sentence:
They work the animals
cultivate, crop, work - prepare for crops; "Work the soil"; "cultivate the land"
--₁₃ is one way to fix, prepare, set up, ready, gear up, set
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s something
work - behave in a certain way when handled; "This dough does not work easily"; "The soft metal works well"
--₁₄ is one way to be
Sample sentence:
Something ----s Adjective/Noun
influence, act upon, work - have and exert influence or effect; "The artist's work influenced the young painter"; "She worked on her friends to support the political candidate"
--₁₅ is one way to affect, impact, bear upon, bear on, touch on, touch
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
Something ----s something
=> Somebody ----s PP
work - operate in or through; "Work the phones"
--₁₆ is one way to operate, run
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s something
work - cause to operate or function; "This pilot works the controls"; "Can you work an electric drill?"
--₁₇ is one way to manage, deal, care, handle
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s something
work - provoke or excite; "The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy"
--₁₈ is one way to stimulate, excite, stir
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
work - gratify and charm, usually in order to influence; "the political candidate worked the crowds"
--₁₉ is one way to capture, enamour, trance, catch, becharm, enamor, captivate, beguile, charm, fascinate, bewitch, entrance, enchant
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s somebody
Something ----s somebody
shape, form, work, mold, mould, forge - make something, usually for a specific function; "She molded the riceballs carefully"; "Form cylinders from the dough"; "shape a figure"; "Work the metal into a sword"
--₂₀ is one way to create from raw material, create from raw stuff
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s something PP
work - move into or onto; "work the raisins into the dough"; "the student worked a few jokes into his presentation"; "work the body onto the flatbed truck"
--₂₁ is one way to move, displace
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s PP
knead, work - make uniform; "knead dough"; "work the clay until it is soft"
--₂₂ is one way to manipulate
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s something
exploit, work - use or manipulate to one's advantage; "He exploit the new taxation system"; "She knows how to work the system"; "he works his parents for sympathy"
--₂₃ is one way to use, utilize, utilise, apply, employ
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s somebody
solve, work out, figure out, puzzle out, lick, work - find the solution to (a problem or question) or understand the meaning of; "did you solve the problem?"; "Work out your problems with the boss"; "this unpleasant situation isn't going to work itself out"; "did you get it?"; "Did you get my meaning?"; "He could not work the math problem"
--₂₄ is one way to understand
Sample sentence:
Somebody ----s something
ferment, work - cause to undergo fermentation; "We ferment the grapes for a very long time to achieve high alcohol content"; "The vintner worked the wine in big oak vats"
--₂₅ is one way to convert
Sample sentences:
Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something
sour, turn, ferment, work - go sour or spoil; "The milk has soured"; "The wine worked"; "The cream has turned--we have to throw it out"
--₂₆ is one way to change state, turn
Sample sentence:
Something ----s
work - arrive at a certain condition through repeated motion; "The stitches of the hem worked loose after she wore the skirt many times"
--₂₇ is one way to become, go, get
Sample sentence:
Something ----s Adjective/Noun