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industrious

industrious

17 3.3
Working hard and carefully to complete tasks
  • adjective
  • /ɪnˈdʌstriəs/
translation icon : trabajador
  • All I'm hearing these days from both Mama and Daddy is how industrious and efficient you are.
  • industrious and sober
  • honest and industrious
  • industrious and thrifty

The word that he used was industrious, he said, some people more industrious than others.

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Examples

  • I think she's very industrious, you know, she never stops doing that.

  • But I, I, I actually believe that, you know, these are, these are people that are industrious, they are capable.

  • Do you have an Israeli working for you who is industrious and able?

  • God gave the world for our improvement of it, and therefore He gave it to the industrious and the rational.

  • We've all become industrious, hard working, honest people all our lives.

  • Fame meant nothing; it was important only to live a modest, sober, industrious life.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Required courses were rare, and an industrious student, with minimal interference, acquired a broad education.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The Indians, as a rule, are fairly industrious and law-abiding.

    Academic text (2010)
  • The most commonly held impression of the citizenry was that they were industrious and orderly.

    Academic text (1997)
  • The industrious student spent countless hours studying to ensure he passed his exams.

Synonyms

hardworking
vsindustrious
78 1.1

Putting a lot of effort into work or study

is a broader persistent work quality rather than only regular habits
diligent
vsindustrious
37 3.6

To work carefully and try hard to finish tasks

focuses more on sustained effort than on careful attention
tireless
vsindustrious
29 3.8

Has a lot of energy and keeps working without stopping

emphasizes steady persistent effort rather than strong energy or stamina
indefatigable
vsindustrious
  • Formal
5 9.3

Always continuing to work without becoming tired

means steady persistent work rather than endless energy
assiduous
vsindustrious
3 8.2

Being careful and hardworking, showing steady effort over time

is about steady persistent effort rather than extra careful attention
untiring
vsindustrious
3.9

Able to keep working with steady energy for a long time

is more about ongoing steady effort than about energy level

Antonyms

355 1.0

Not willing to work or make an effort

57 2.8

Not working or being used

How Industrious

assiduous
3 8.2
industrious
17 3.3
diligent
37 3.6
hardworking
78 1.1

Surface Forms

industrious positive
industriouser comparative
industriousest superlative

Morphology

industrious = industry (semi-transparent) = industry + ous

Formed by adding the adjective-forming suffix '-ous' to 'industry', but the adjective reflects the sense 'diligence/hard work' rather than the more common modern sense 'manufacturing', so learners who know only the economic sense may not infer the meaning.

Etymology

Industrious comes from the same root as industry, a word for 'work' and factories, so imagine busy workers or bees doing steady tasks. So, to be industrious is to be hardworking and always busy doing useful work.