work

noun

• 1activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a purpose or result:he was tired after a day’s work in the fields
• (works) [in combination] a place or premises for industrial activity, typically manufacturing:he found a job in the ironworks

• 2mental or physical activity as a means of earning income; employment:I’m still looking for work
• the place where one works:I was returning home from work on a packed subway
• the period of time spent during the day engaged in such activity:he was going to the theater after work

• 3a task or tasks to be undertaken; something a person or thing has to do:they made sure the work was progressing smoothly
• the materials for this:she frequently took work home with her
• informal cosmetic plastic surgery:between you and me, I think he’s had some work done
• (works) Theology good or moral deeds:the Clapham sect was concerned with works rather than with faith

• 4something done or made:her work hangs in all the main American collections
• the result of the action of a specified person or thing:the bombing had been the work of a German-based cell
• a literary or musical composition or other piece of fine art:a work of fiction
• (works) all literary or musical pieces by a particular author, composer, or artist, regarded collectively:the works of Schubert fill several feet of shelf space
• a piece of embroidery, sewing, or knitting, typically made using a specified stitch or method.
• (usually works) Military a defensive structure.
• (works) an architectural or engineering structure such as a bridge or dam.
• the record of the successive calculations made in solving a mathematical problem:show your work on a separate sheet of paper

• 5 (works) the operative part of a clock or other machine:she could almost hear the tick of its works

• 6 Physics the exertion of force overcoming resistance or producing molecular change.

• 7 (the works) informal everything needed, desired, or expected:the heavens put on a show: sheet lightning, hailstones—the works

verb (pastand past participle worked or archaicwrought /rôt/)

• 1be engaged in physical or mental activity in order to achieve a purpose or result, especially in one’s job; do work:an engineer who had been working on a design for a more efficient wing new contracts forcing employees to work longer hours
• be employed, typically in a specified occupation or field:Taylor has worked in education for 17 years
• (work in) (of an artist) produce articles or pictures using (a particular material or medium):he works in clay over a very strong frame
• [with object] produce (an article or design) using a specified material or sewing stitch:the castle itself is worked in tent stitch
• [with object] set to or keep at work:Jane is working you too hard
• [with object] cultivate (land) or extract materials from (a mine or quarry):contracts and leases to work the mines
• [with object] solve (a puzzle or mathematical problem):she spent her days working crosswords
• [with object] practice one’s occupation or operate in or at (a particular place):I worked a few clubs and so forth
• make efforts to achieve something; campaign:we spend a great deal of our time working for the lacto-vegetarian cause

• 2(of a machine or system) operate or function, especially properly or effectively:his cell phone doesn’t work unless he goes to a high point
• (of a machine or a part of it) run; go through regular motions:it’s designed to go into a special “rest” state when it’s not working
• (especially of a person’s features) move violently or convulsively:hair wild, mouth working furiously
• [with object] cause (a device or machine) to operate:teaching customers how to work a VCR
• (of a plan or method) have the desired result or effect:the desperate ploy had worked
• [with object] bring about; produce as a result:with a dash of blusher here and there, you can work miracles
• [with object] informal arrange or contrive:the chairman was prepared to work it for Phillip if he was interested
• (work on/upon) exert influence or use one’s persuasive power on (someone or their feelings):she worked upon the sympathy of her associates
• [with object] use one’s persuasive power to stir the emotions of (a person or group of people):the born politician’s art of working a crowd

• 3 [with object or complement] bring (a material or mixture) to a desired shape or consistency by hammering, kneading, or some other method:work the mixture into a paste with your hands
• bring into a specified state, especially an emotional state:Harold had worked himself into a minor rage

• 4 [with adverbial or complement] move or cause to move gradually or with difficulty into another position, typically by means of constant movement or pressure: [with object]:comb from tip to root, working out the knots at the end [no object]:its bases were already working loose
• (of joints, such as those in a wooden ship) loosen and flex under repeated stress.
• [with adverbial] Sailing make progress to windward, with repeated tacking:trying to work to windward in light airs