What does work mean?

What does work mean?. The world's largest and most trusted free online dictionary: definitions, synonyms, word origins, example sentences, word games, and more.

What does work mean? - The Free Dictionary

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[n] activity directed toward making or doing something(she checked several points needing further work)[v] 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)[n] a

work

work - The Free Dictionary

[n] activity directed toward making or doing something
(she checked several points needing further work)

[v] 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)

[n] 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)

[v] 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)

[n] the occupation for which you are paid
(he is looking for employment a lot of people are out of work)

[v] 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)

[n] 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)

[v] 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)

[n] (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)

[v] shape, form, or improve a material
(work stone into tools process iron work the metal)

[n] a place where work is done
(he arrived at work early today)

[v] give a workout to
(Some parents exercise their infants My personal trainer works me hard work one's muscles this puzzle will exercise your mind)

[n] 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)

[v] proceed along a path
(work one's way through the crowd make one's way into the forest)

[v] operate in a certain place, area, or specialty
(She works the night clubs The salesman works the Midwest This artist works mostly in acrylics)

[v] 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)

[v] move in an agitated manner
(His fingers worked with tension)

[v] 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)

[v] cause to work
(he is working his servants hard)

[v] prepare for crops
(Work the soil cultivate the land)

[v] behave in a certain way when handled
(This dough does not work easily The soft metal works well)

[v] have and exert influence or effect
(The artist's work influenced the young painter She worked on her friends to support the political candidate)

[v] operate in or through
(Work the phones)

[v] cause to operate or function
(This pilot works the controls Can you work an electric drill?)

[v] provoke or excite
(The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy)

[v] gratify and charm, usually in order to influence
(the political candidate worked the crowds)

[v] make something, usually for a specific function
(She molded the rice balls carefully Form cylinders from the dough shape a figure Work the metal into a sword)

[v] 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)

[v] make uniform
(knead dough work the clay until it is soft)

[v] 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)

[v] 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)

[v] 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)

[v] go sour or spoil
(The milk has soured The wine worked The cream has turned--we have to throw it out)

[v] arrive at a certain condition through repeated motion
(The stitches of the hem worked loose after she wore the skirt many times)

Other vocabulary

w, w-shaped, w. b. yeats, w. c. fields, w. c. handy, w. e. b. du bois, w. h. auden, w. h. hudson, w. k. kellogg, w. somerset maugham, w. v. quine, w. w. jacobs, w.c., w.m.d., wa, wabash, wabash river, wac, wackily, wacko, wacky, waco, wad, wadding, waddle, waddler, wade, wader, waders, wadi, o, o level, o ring, o'brien, o'casey, o'clock, o'connor, o'er, o'flaherty, o'hara, o'keeffe, o'neill, o'toole, o. henry, o.d., o.e.d., o.k., oaf, oafish, oahu, oahu island, oak, oak apple, oak blight, oak chestnut, oak fern, oak leaf cluster, oak tree, oak-leaved goosefoot, oaken

Dictionary

A dictionary is a listing of lexemes from the lexicon of one or more specific languages, often arranged alphabetically (or by consonantal root for Semitic languages or radical and stroke for ideographic languages), which may include information on definitions, usage, etymologies, pronunciations, translation, etc. It is a lexicographical reference that shows inter-relationships among the data.

A broad distinction is made between general and specialized dictionaries. Specialized dictionaries include words in specialist fields, rather than a complete range of words in the language. Lexical items that describe concepts in specific fields are usually called terms instead of words, although there is no consensus whether lexicology and terminology are two different fields of study. In theory, general dictionaries are supposed[citation needed] to be semasiological, mapping word to definition, while specialized dictionaries are supposed to be onomasiological, first identifying concepts and then establishing the terms used to designate them. In practice, the two approaches are used for both types. There are other types of dictionaries that do not fit neatly into the above distinction, for instance bilingual (translation) dictionaries, dictionaries of synonyms (thesauri), and rhyming dictionaries. The word dictionary (unqualified) is usually understood to refer to a general purpose monolingual dictionary.

There is also a contrast between prescriptive or descriptive dictionaries; the former reflect what is seen as correct use of the language while the latter reflect recorded actual use. Stylistic indications (e.g. "informal" or "vulgar") in many modern dictionaries are also considered by some to be less than objectively descriptive.

The first recorded dictionaries date back to Sumerian times around 2300 BCE, in the form of bilingual dictionaries, and the oldest surviving monolingual dictionaries are Chinese dictionaries c. 3rd century BCE. The first purely English alphabetical dictionary was A Table Alphabeticall, written in 1604, and monolingual dictionaries in other languages also began appearing in Europe at around this time. The systematic study of dictionaries as objects of scientific interest arose as a 20th-century enterprise, called lexicography, and largely initiated by Ladislav Zgusta. The birth of the new discipline was not without controversy, with the practical dictionary-makers being sometimes accused by others of having an "astonishing" lack of method and critical-self reflection.