Unit 3: Work

work

NOUN: 1. Something done: act, action, deed, doing, thing. See DO. 2. Activity pursued as a livelihood: art, business, calling, career, craft, employment, job, line, métier, occupation, profession, pursuit, trade, vocation. Slang : racket. Archaic : employ. See ACTION. 3. Something that is the result of creative effort: composition, opus, piece, production. See MAKE. 4. Physical exertion that is usually difficult and exhausting: drudgery, labor, moil, toil, travail. Informal : sweat. Chiefly British : fag. Idioms: sweat of one's brow. See WORK. 5. An issue of printed material offered for sale or distribution: opus, publication, title, volume. See WORDS. 6. Informal. An amount or quantity from which nothing is left out or held back. Used in plural: aggregate, all, entirety, everything, gross, sum, total, totality, whole. Idioms: everything but (or except) the kitchen sink, lock, stock, and barrel, the whole ball of wax (or kit and caboodle) (or megillah) (or nine yards) (or shebang) . See PART. 7. A building or complex in which an industry is located. Used in plural: factory, mill, plant. See MAKE, PLACE. 8. The technique, style, and quality of working: craftsmanship, workmanship. See WORK.
VERB: 1. To react in a specified way: act, behave, function, operate, perform. See ACTION. 2. To introduce gradually and slyly: edge, foist, infiltrate, insinuate, wind2, worm. See ENTER. 3. To exert one's mental or physical powers, usually under difficulty and to the point of exhaustion: drive, fag, labor, moil, strain1, strive, sweat, toil, travail, tug. Idioms: break one's back (or neck) . See WORK. 4. To control or direct the functioning of: manage, operate, run, use. See CONTROL. 5. To turn out well: come off, go, go over, pan out, succeed, work out. Slang : click. See THRIVE. 6. To prepare (soil) for the planting and raising of crops: cultivate, culture, dress, tend2, till. See PREPARED, TOUCH. 7. To arrive at an answer to (a mathematical problem): solve, work out. Informal : figure out. See REASON. 8. To force to work: drive, task, tax. Idioms: crack the whip. See WORK. 9. To handle in a way so as to mix, form, and shape: knead, manipulate. See TOUCH. 10. To perform a function effectively: function, go, operate, run, take. See THRIVE.
PHRASAL VERB: work out To plan the details or arrangements of: arrange, lay out, prepare, schedule. See PLANNED. work out 1. To form a strategy for: blueprint, cast, chart, conceive, contrive, design, devise, formulate, frame, lay1, plan, project, scheme, strategize. Informal : dope out. Idioms: lay plans. See PLANNED. 2. To subject to or engage in forms of exertion in order to train, strengthen, or condition: drill, exercise, practice, train. See WORK. 3. To turn out well: come off, go, go over, pan out, succeed, work. Slang : click. See THRIVE. 4. To arrive at an answer to (a mathematical problem): solve, work. Informal : figure out. See REASON. work up To stir to action or feeling: egg on, excite, foment, galvanize, goad, impel, incite, inflame, inspire, instigate, motivate, move, pique, prick, prod, prompt, propel, provoke, set off, spur, stimulate, touch off, trigger. See CAUSE, EXCITE.


Roget’s II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition. Copyright © 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.