Things done as an action or movement
Plural for work, especially physical, manual or hard labor
“Most are low-end workers doing street-cleaning or other manual labour.”
Plural for a piece of work or assignment to be done or undertaken
“The labour involved includes time for stripping the old wax, applying new wax, and mopping and buffing at regular intervals throughout the cycle.”
Plural for effort or energy expended on work, a task, or a goal
“I knew nothing about any rewards, but I was willing to put in the labour.”
Plural for workers, especially manual workers, considered collectively
“The tile company had callously sacked several regular workers and replaced them with casual labour.”
Plural for something made, achieved or produced through effort
“While this book was a personal labour of love for nearly five years, it could never have been produced without the help and cooperation of many people.”
Plural for a difficult or tedious undertaking
“It was a great labour for her to whisper, so I leaned in close to her.”
Plural for the process of childbirth or bearing young
“She underwent labour and the subsequent delivery of her first child by Caesarean section.”
Plural for a very unpleasant and prolonged experience
Plural for the state of being a villein
Plural for the quality of being dedicated or committed to a task or purpose
Plural for the state or condition of being difficult
Plural for severe suffering, difficulty or privation
Plural for the cultivation of arable land by plowing, sowing and raising crops
Plural for a situation that is difficult or dangerous
To apply great and continuous effort towards work, a task, or a goal
“Bestor was appointed general agent, with the understanding that he would labour to complete at once the endowment of the college.”
To agonize over something
“He used to labour over his decision of which students to choose for the EAE program, but now he says that nearly any student who really wants to join can do it.”
To greatly emphasize a point or issue
“Perhaps one need not labour the point to exhaustion to be able to eliminate the idea of a widespread conspiracy to deceive.”
To be burdened or disadvantaged by something
“We labour under the expectations of others and our given culture.”
To move or jolt around unsteadily or abruptly
To cause anguish or distress to
To work (oneself) overly hard
To break up (soil) in preparation for sowing or planting
To exert for the sake of training, especially in fields requiring toughness or discipline
To struggle or be afflicted with hardship or something undesirable
To carry out a role or penalty
To shape or form a given material
Related Words and Phrases
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