» work

Words people most associate with “work”:

  1. play,
  2. hard,
  3. job,
  4. ethic,
  5. sucks

[via wordassociation.org]

Noun (7 meanings)

1. activity directed toward making or doing something.

work

Example:
  • “she checked several points needing further work”
work is a type of:
types of work:
  • action (noun) - the most important or interesting work or activity in a specific area or field
  • busywork, make-work (noun) - active work of little value
  • care, attention, aid, tending (noun) - the work of providing treatment for or attending to someone or something
  • coursework (noun) - work assigned to and done by a student during a course of study
  • duty (noun) - work that you are obliged to perform for moral or legal reasons
  • heavy lifting (noun) - difficult work
  • housewifery (noun) - the work of a housewife
  • housework, housekeeping (noun) - the work of cleaning and running a house
  • investigation, investigating (noun) - the work of inquiring into something thoroughly and systematically
  • ironing (noun) - the work of using heat to smooth washed clothes in order to remove any wrinkles
  • job (noun) - a damaging piece of work
  • job (noun) - the performance of a piece of work
  • labor, labour, toil (noun) - productive work (especially physical work done for wages)
  • logging (noun) - the work of cutting down trees for timber
  • loose end, unfinished business (noun) - work that is left incomplete
  • mission, missionary work (noun) - the organized work of a religious missionary
  • nightwork (noun) - work to be done at night
  • operation, procedure (noun) - a process or series of acts especially of a practical or mechanical nature involved in a particular form of work
  • paperwork (noun) - work that involves handling papers: forms or letters or reports etc.
  • service (noun) - work done by one person or group that benefits another
  • shining, polishing (noun) - the work of making something smooth and shiny by rubbing or waxing it
  • spadework (noun) - dull or routine preliminary work preparing for an undertaking
  • subbing, substituting (noun) - working as a substitute for someone who is ill or on leave of absence
  • timework (noun) - work paid for at a rate per unit of time
  • undertaking, project, task, labor (noun) - any piece of work that is undertaken or attempted
  • wash, washing, lavation (noun) - the work of cleansing (usually with soap and water)
  • welfare work, social service (noun) - an organized activity to improve the condition of disadvantaged people in society
work is derivationally related to:
  • to work (verb) - proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity
  • to work, put to work (verb) - cause to work
  • to work (verb) - exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
  • to work (verb) - operate in a certain place, area, or specialty

2. a product produced or accomplished through the effort or activity or agency of a person or thing.

work, piece of work

Examples:
  • “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”
work is a type of:
  • product, production (noun) - an artifact that has been created by someone or some process
types of work:
  • follow-up, followup (noun) - a piece of work that exploits or builds on earlier work
  • handicraft, handcraft, handiwork, handwork (noun) - a work produced by hand labor
  • ironwork (noun) - work made of iron (gratings or rails or railings etc)
  • lacework (noun) - work consisting of (or resembling) lace fabric
  • lacquerware (noun) - a decorative work made of wood and covered with lacquer and often inlaid with ivory or precious metals
  • leatherwork (noun) - work made of leather
  • masterpiece, chef-d'oeuvre (noun) - the most outstanding work of a creative artist or craftsman
  • metalwork (noun) - the metal parts of something
  • openwork (noun) - ornamental work (such as embroidery or latticework) having a pattern of openings
  • polychrome (noun) - a piece of work composed of or decorated in many colors
  • publication (noun) - a copy of a printed work offered for distribution
  • silverwork (noun) - decorative work made of silver
  • wicker, wickerwork, caning (noun) - work made of interlaced slender branches (especially willow branches)
  • woodwork (noun) - work made of wood
  • work in progress (noun) - a piece of work that is not yet finished
  • workpiece (noun) - work consisting of a piece of metal being machined
work is derivationally related to:
  • to work (verb) - exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
  • to work, act (verb) - have an effect or outcome

3. the occupation for which you are paid.

employment, work

Examples:
  • “he is looking for employment”,
  • “a lot of people are out of work”
work is a type of:
types of work:
  • coaching, coaching job (noun) - the job of a professional coach
  • engagement, booking (noun) - employment for performers or performing groups that lasts for a limited period of time
  • ministry (noun) - the work of a minister of religion
  • paper route (noun) - the job of delivering newspapers regularly
  • piecework (noun) - work paid for according to the quantity produced
  • public service (noun) - employment within a government system (especially in the civil service)
  • seafaring, navigation, sailing (noun) - the work of a sailor
  • service (noun) - employment in or work for another
  • services (noun) - performance of duties or provision of space and equipment helpful to others
  • telecommuting, teleworking (noun) - employment at home while communicating with the workplace by phone or fax or modem
  • workload, work load (noun) - work that a person is expected to do in a specified time
work is derivationally related to:

4. applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject (especially by reading).

study, work

Examples:
  • “mastering a second language requires a lot of work”,
  • “no schools offer graduate study in interior design”
work is a type of:
work is derivationally related to:

5. (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

Example:
  • “work equals force times distance”
work is a type of:
  • energy, free energy (noun) - (physics) a thermodynamic quantity equivalent to the capacity of a physical system to do work
Domain of synset - TOPIC:

6. a place where work is done.

workplace, work

Example:
  • “he arrived at work early today”
work is a type of:
types of work:
  • bakery, bakeshop, bakehouse (noun) - a workplace where baked goods (breads and cakes and pastries) are produced or sold
  • beehive (noun) - any workplace where people are very busy
  • brokerage house, brokerage (noun) - place where a broker conducts his business
  • central, telephone exchange, exchange (noun) - a workplace that serves as a telecommunications facility where lines from telephones can be connected together to permit communication
  • colliery, pit (noun) - a workplace consisting of a coal mine plus all the buildings and equipment connected with it
  • creamery (noun) - a workplace where dairy products (butter and cheese etc.) are produced or sold
  • drill site (noun) - workplace that is the site of a drill hole
  • exchange (noun) - a workplace for buying and selling
  • farm (noun) - workplace consisting of farm buildings and cultivated land as a unit
  • fish farm (noun) - a workplace (usually a pond) where fish are raised for food
  • fishery, piscary (noun) - a workplace where fish are caught and processed and sold
  • forge, smithy (noun) - a workplace where metal is worked by heating and hammering
  • gasworks (noun) - the workplace where coal gas is manufactured
  • glassworks (noun) - a workplace where glass is made
  • ironworks (noun) - the workplace where iron is smelted or where iron goods are made
  • job (noun) - a workplace
  • lab, laboratory, research lab, research laboratory, science lab, science laboratory (noun) - a workplace for the conduct of scientific research
  • laundry (noun) - workplace where clothes are washed and ironed
  • location (noun) - a workplace away from a studio at which some or all of a movie may be made
  • lumberyard (noun) - a workplace where lumber is stocked for sale
  • oyster bed, oyster bank, oyster park (noun) - a workplace where oysters are bred and grown
  • proving ground (noun) - a workplace for testing new equipment or ideas
  • ropewalk, rope yard (noun) - workplace consisting of a long narrow path or shed where rope is made
  • roundhouse (noun) - workplace consisting of a circular building for repairing locomotives
  • shipyard (noun) - a workplace where ships are built or repaired
  • shop floor (noun) - workplace consisting of the part of a factory housing the machines
  • studio (noun) - workplace for the teaching or practice of an art
  • studio (noun) - workplace consisting of a room or building where movies or television shows or radio programs are produced and recorded
  • tannery (noun) - workplace where skins and hides are tanned
  • test bed (noun) - a place equipped with instruments for testing (e.g. engines or machinery or computer programs etc.) under working conditions
  • waterworks (noun) - workplace where water is stored and purified and distributed for a community
  • workshop, shop (noun) - small workplace where handcrafts or manufacturing are done
parts of work:
  • locker room (noun) - a room (as at an athletic facility or workplace) where you can change clothes and which contains lockers for the temporary storage of your clothing and personal possessions

7. the total output of a writer or artist (or a substantial part of it).

oeuvre, work, body of work

Examples:
  • “he studied the entire Wagnerian oeuvre”,
  • “Picasso's work can be divided into periods”
work is a type of:
types of work:
  • writing (noun) - (usually plural) the collected work of an author

Verb (27 meanings)

1. exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity.

to work

Examples:
  • “I will work hard to improve my grades”,
  • “she worked hard for better living conditions for the poor”
to work is the opposite of:
ways to work:
  • to assist (verb) - act as an assistant in a subordinate or supportive function
  • to beaver, beaver away (verb) - work hard on something
  • to boondoggle (verb) - do useless, wasteful, or trivial work
  • to busy, occupy (verb) - keep busy with
  • to carpenter (verb) - work as a carpenter
to work is derivationally related to:
  • actor, doer, worker (noun) - a person who acts and gets things done
  • work (noun) - activity directed toward making or doing something
  • work, piece of work (noun) - a product produced or accomplished through the effort or activity or agency of a person or thing
  • worker (noun) - sterile member of a colony of social insects that forages for food and cares for the larvae
  • worker (noun) - a person who works at a specific occupation
Verb group:

2. be employed.

to work, do work

Examples:
  • “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”
ways to work:
  • to bank (verb) - be in the banking business
  • to drive (verb) - work as a driver
  • to farm (verb) - be a farmer
  • to fill, take, occupy (verb) - assume, as of positions or roles
  • to fink, scab, rat, blackleg (verb) - take the place of work of someone on strike
to work is derivationally related to:
  • employment, work (noun) - the occupation for which you are paid
  • worker (noun) - a person who works at a specific occupation
Verb group:
  • to work, put to work (verb) - cause to work
  • to work (verb) - exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
  • to work (verb) - operate in a certain place, area, or specialty

3. have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or expected.

to work, act

Examples:
  • “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”
to work is a way to:
to work is derivationally related to:
Verb group:

4. perform as expected when applied.

to function, work, operate, go, run

Examples:
  • “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”
to work is the opposite of:
ways to work:
  • to cut (verb) - function as a cutting instrument
  • to double (verb) - do double duty
  • to roll (verb) - begin operating or running
  • to run (verb) - be operating, running or functioning
  • to service, serve (verb) - be used by
to work is derivationally related to:
Verb group:
  • to run (verb) - be operating, running or functioning
  • to work (verb) - operate in or through

5. shape, form, or improve a material.

to work, work on, process

Examples:
  • “work stone into tools”,
  • “process iron”,
  • “work the metal”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
  • to till (verb) - work land as by ploughing, harrowing, and manuring, in order to make it ready for cultivation
  • to tool (verb) - work with a tool
to work is derivationally related to:
Verb group:

6. give a workout to.

to exercise, work, work out

Examples:
  • “Some parents exercise their infants”,
  • “My personal trainer works me hard”,
  • “work one's muscles”,
  • “this puzzle will exercise your mind”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
  • to warm up (verb) - cause to do preliminary exercises so as to stretch the muscles
to work is derivationally related to:
Cause:
Verb group:

7. proceed along a path.

to make, work

Examples:
  • “work one's way through the crowd”,
  • “make one's way into the forest”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
  • to bushwhack (verb) - cut one's way through the woods or bush
  • to claw (verb) - move as if by clawing, seizing, or digging
  • to jostle (verb) - make one's way by jostling, pushing, or shoving
Verb group:
  • to work (verb) - proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity

8. operate in a certain place, area, or specialty.

to work

Examples:
  • “She works the night clubs”,
  • “The salesman works the Midwest”,
  • “This artist works mostly in acrylics”
to work is a way to:
  • to work (verb) - exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
to work is derivationally related to:
  • work (noun) - activity directed toward making or doing something
Verb group:

9. proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity.

to work

Examples:
  • “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”
to work is a way to:
  • to go, proceed, move (verb) - follow a procedure or take a course
to work is derivationally related to:
  • work (noun) - activity directed toward making or doing something
Verb group:
  • to make, work (verb) - proceed along a path

10. move in an agitated manner.

to work

Example:
  • “His fingers worked with tension”
to work is a way to:
  • to move, displace (verb) - cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense

11. cause to happen or to occur as a consequence.

to bring, work, play, wreak, make for

Examples:
  • “I cannot work a miracle”,
  • “wreak havoc”,
  • “bring comments”,
  • “play a joke”,
  • “The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area”
to work is a way to:
  • to make, create (verb) - make or cause to be or to become
to work is derivationally related to:
see also:
Verb group:
  • to work, act (verb) - have an effect or outcome

12. cause to work.

to work, put to work

Example:
  • “he is working his servants hard”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
to work is derivationally related to:
  • employment, work (noun) - the occupation for which you are paid
  • work (noun) - activity directed toward making or doing something
Cause:
Verb group:

13. prepare for crops.

to cultivate, crop, work

Examples:
  • “Work the soil”,
  • “cultivate the land”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
to work is derivationally related to:
  • crop, harvest (noun) - the yield from plants in a single growing season
  • cultivation (noun) - (agriculture) production of food by preparing the land to grow crops (especially on a large scale)
  • cultivator, tiller (noun) - a farm implement used to break up the surface of the soil (for aeration and weed control and conservation of moisture)
Domain of synset - TOPIC:
Verb group:

14. behave in a certain way when handled.

to work

Examples:
  • “This dough does not work easily”,
  • “The soft metal works well”
to work is a way to:
  • to be (verb) - have the quality of being
Verb group:

15. have and exert influence or effect.

to influence, act upon, work

Examples:
  • “The artist's work influenced the young painter”,
  • “She worked on her friends to support the political candidate”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
to work is derivationally related to:
  • influence (noun) - a power to affect persons or events especially power based on prestige etc
  • influence (noun) - a cognitive factor that tends to have an effect on what you do
  • influence (noun) - one having power to influence another
  • influence (noun) - the effect of one thing (or person) on another

16. operate in or through.

to work

Example:
  • “Work the phones”
to work is a way to:
Verb group:

17. cause to operate or function.

to work

Examples:
  • “This pilot works the controls”,
  • “Can you work an electric drill?”
to work is a way to:
to work is derivationally related to:
Verb group:
  • to work (verb) - operate in or through

18. provoke or excite.

to work

Example:
  • “The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy”
to work is a way to:
Verb group:
  • to exploit, work (verb) - use or manipulate to one's advantage
  • to work (verb) - gratify and charm, usually in order to influence

19. gratify and charm, usually in order to influence.

to work

Example:
  • “the political candidate worked the crowds”
to work is a way to:
Verb group:
  • to work (verb) - provoke or excite

20. make something, usually for a specific function.

to shape, form, work, mold, mould, forge

Examples:
  • “She molded the rice balls carefully”,
  • “Form cylinders from the dough”,
  • “shape a figure”,
  • “Work the metal into a sword”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
  • to beat (verb) - shape by beating
  • to carve (verb) - form by carving
  • to cast, mold, mould (verb) - form by pouring (e.g., wax or hot metal) into a cast or mold
  • to chip (verb) - form by chipping
  • to cut out (verb) - form and create by cutting out
  • to grind (verb) - shape or form by grinding
  • to handbuild, hand-build, coil (verb) - make without a potter's wheel
  • to hill (verb) - form into a hill
  • to layer (verb) - make or form a layer
  • to machine (verb) - turn, shape, mold, or otherwise finish by machinery
  • to model, mold, mould (verb) - form in clay, wax, etc
  • to mound (verb) - form into a rounded elevation
  • to preform (verb) - form or shape beforehand or determine the shape of beforehand
  • to preform (verb) - form into a shape resembling the final, desired one
  • to puddle (verb) - subject to puddling or form by puddling
  • to reshape, remold (verb) - shape again or shape differently
  • to roughcast (verb) - shape roughly
  • to sculpt, sculpture (verb) - create by shaping stone or wood or any other hard material
  • to sinter (verb) - cause (ores or powdery metals) to become a coherent mass by heating without melting
  • to stamp (verb) - form or cut out with a mold, form, or die
  • to swage, upset (verb) - form metals with a swage
  • to throw (verb) - make on a potter's wheel
to work is derivationally related to:
Verb group:

21. move into or onto.

to work

Examples:
  • “work the raisins into the dough”,
  • “the student worked a few jokes into his presentation”,
  • “work the body onto the flatbed truck”
to work is a way to:
  • to move, displace (verb) - cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense
ways to work:
  • to stir (verb) - mix or add by stirring

22. make uniform.

to knead, work

Examples:
  • “knead dough”,
  • “work the clay until it is soft”
to work is a way to:
  • to manipulate (verb) - hold something in one's hands and move it
ways to work:
  • to masticate (verb) - grind and knead
  • to proof (verb) - knead to reach proper lightness
Verb group:

23. use or manipulate to one's advantage.

to exploit, work

Examples:
  • “He exploit the new taxation system”,
  • “She knows how to work the system”,
  • “he works his parents for sympathy”
to work is a way to:
ways to work:
  • to avail, help (verb) - take or use
  • to make hay (verb) - turn to one's advantage
  • to play (verb) - use to one's advantage
  • to prey, feed (verb) - profit from in an exploitatory manner
  • to use (verb) - seek or achieve an end by using to one's advantage
to work is derivationally related to:
Verb group:
  • to work (verb) - provoke or excite

24. find the solution to (a problem or question) or understand the meaning of.

to solve, work out, figure out, puzzle out, lick, work

Examples:
  • “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”
to work is a way to:
  • to understand (verb) - know and comprehend the nature or meaning of
ways to work:
  • to answer, resolve (verb) - understand the meaning of
  • to answer (verb) - give the correct answer or solution to
  • to break (verb) - find the solution or key to
  • to guess, infer (verb) - guess correctly
  • to riddle (verb) - explain a riddle
  • to strike (verb) - arrive at after reckoning, deliberating, and weighing
to work is derivationally related to:
to work entails:
  • to reason (verb) - think logically

25. cause to undergo fermentation.

to ferment, work

Examples:
  • “We ferment the grapes for a very long time to achieve high alcohol content”,
  • “The vintner worked the wine in big oak vats”
to work is a way to:
  • to convert (verb) - change the nature, purpose, or function of something
ways to work:
  • to vinify (verb) - convert a juice into wine by fermentation
to work is derivationally related to:
Cause:
Verb group:

26. go sour or spoil.

to sour, turn, ferment, work

Examples:
  • “The milk has soured”,
  • “The wine worked”,
  • “The cream has turned--we have to throw it out”
to work is a way to:
  • to change state, turn (verb) - undergo a transformation or a change of position or action
to work is derivationally related to:
Verb group:
  • to ferment, work (verb) - cause to undergo fermentation

27. arrive at a certain condition through repeated motion.

to work

Example:
  • “The stitches of the hem worked loose after she wore the skirt many times”
to work is a way to:
  • to become, go, get (verb) - enter or assume a certain state or condition