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Glite Dictionary
to strike work

to strike work

5.7
To stop doing a job to protest for better pay or conditions
  • phrasal verb
  • /straɪk wɜrk/
translation icon : dejar de trabajar
  • Thousands of teachers struck work during the nationwide protest.

Examples

  • When they decided to strike work, production at the factory came to a halt.

  • The union members voted to strike work if their demands were not met.

  • The workers decided to strike work to demand better safety conditions.

  • After negotiations failed, the employees chose to strike work to express their dissatisfaction.

  • Many bus drivers planned to strike work unless their pay was increased.

Synonyms

to strike
vsto strike work
133 3.2

To stop work as a protest to get better pay

is the same action but often appears as a multiword phrase
to go on strike
vsto strike work
28 3.2

Stop working as a group to protest for better pay or conditions

is the same action but presented as a common spoken phrase
to walk out
vsto strike work
11 4.1

Stop work and leave a place as a protest by workers

involves stopping work but does not require leaving the workplace
to strike for better wages
vsto strike work
1 3.8

To stop work together to ask the employer for higher pay

includes pay demands but also covers demands about working conditions
to down tools
vsto strike work
  • Literature
1 8.1

Workers stop work to protest about pay or conditions

is focused on protest to demand better conditions or pay
to wildcat
vsto strike work
8.1

To take part in a strike without union permission

is the same protest action but is not specifically unauthorized

Antonyms

work
∞ 1.0

Effort people use to do a job or task

How Disruptive

to strike work
5.7
to work to rule
  • Literature
7.5

Surface Forms

strike work infinitive
striking work present participle
strikes work third person singular
struck work past
struck work past participle

Morphology

strike + work

The MWE meaning is directly and transparently derived from its parts: 'strike' (to stop working as a protest) combined with 'work' (job activity) yields 'to stop working as a form of protest.' This verb+noun composition is a regular, cross-linguistically common pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both constituent meanings would readily infer the MWE.

Etymology

The verb strike work may come from a simple image: workers would strike by setting down their tools and stop the work to show they were unhappy. So, strike work means 'to stop working' together to demand better pay or conditions.