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Glite Dictionary
out of work

out of work

124 1.8
Without a job and trying to find one
  • idiom
translation icon : desempleado
  • After losing her job, she was out of work for several months.
  • people out of work
  • put people out of work
  • thousands out of work

They invented the reality show and put more of them out of work than ever.

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Examples

  • Most people who are out of work never know what it is to work.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • So I've been out of work for since July now.

  • Meanwhile, my brother's been out of work for two years.

    Blood Stains (2018)

  • Half your kids are out of work and the other half are in jail.

    Bulworth (1998)

  • But for my part, I am out of work, though not poor and not without dreams.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • My parents were both out of work for health reasons.

    Academic text (2013)

  • Since then, a lot of people have been out of work.

    Academic text (2010)

  • I'm technically out of work at the moment.

  • So people are literally out of work, not paying their mortgages, and we're seeing record increases in home prices.

  • Almost all unemployed people, including youngsters, consider being out of work a negative experience.

    Academic text (1997)

Synonyms

unemployed
vsout of work
274 1.7

Without work and looking for a job

is the everyday informal expression rather than formal label
laid-off
vsout of work
  • US
68 4.0

Without a job because the company reduced staff or closed

is the general state of joblessness not implying the cause
jobless
vsout of work
23 1.9

Not having a job

is the common two-word informal phrase rather than the single word
workless
vsout of work
  • UK
3.9

Without a job or any paid position

is more conversational and used in everyday speech
nonworking
vsout of work
3.4

Not having a paid job

is the simple description focused on job absence rather than current activity
unhired
vsout of work
4.6

A person who is not given a job after applying

is the broader condition of not having work, not only selection outcome

Antonyms

employed
1.0

Having a paid job

How Long

unemployed
274 1.7
out of work
124 1.8
between jobs
8 3.4

Surface Forms

out of work positive

Morphology

out + of + work

The phrase is compositionally built from 'out of' (indicating lack or absence) + 'work' (job), so its meaning 'without a job' is directly derivable from the constituents. This is a common, cross-linguistically supported construction (equivalent to 'without work' in many languages), making it immediately understandable to a B1 learner who knows the words.

Etymology

Out of work comes from a simple image: imagine someone standing outside their workplace, literally out of work, so they are not at their job. That's why it means 'not having a job' or 'unemployed'.