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worker

worker

600 1.0
A person employed to do physical or routine jobs
  • noun
  • /ˈwɜrkər/
translation icon : trabajador
  • After years of service, each worker deserves recognition for their hard work and dedication.
  • a social worker
  • health workers
  • a care worker

Well, how many vacation days does the average worker get per year?

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Examples

  • Well, how many vacation days does the average worker get per year?

  • Most of them were textile workers working for fast fashion brands.

  • We can create places of work where workers can be happy and be well.

  • According to the LA Times, film and TV workers are leaving, too.

  • You might have a dedicated student worker who is thinking about library school.

    Academic text (2012)
  • I could always use a good worker.

  • In other words, the average American worker generates $13 more per hour than the average Canadian worker.

    Academic text (2017)
  • An assembly line moves a product forward while workers and machines add subassemblies to the product.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Others include employing health workers in neighborhoods to help residents and collaborative research partnerships.

    Academic text (2017)
  • He was a steel worker and he was a locksmith.

Synonyms

employee
vsworker
1.3

A person hired by a company or another person to do paid work

focuses more on hands on or routine physical tasks rather than formal employment
laborer
vsworker
  • US
68 1.0

A person who does hard physical work without special skills, often on building sites

is broader, also covering routine paid tasks not only hard outdoor work
working person
vsworker
49 2.8

A person who does manual or factory work for pay, not a manager

is the general name for any employed person who does routine physical work
hired hand
vsworker
7 3.6

A person paid to do manual work on a farm or ranch

is more general, covering many kinds of paid physical or routine work
manual laborer
vsworker
  • US
1 3.0

A person who does hard work using their hands

is a general employed person who may or may not use physical strength
jobholder
vsworker
1 2.7

A person who has regular paid work for an organization

stresses active doing of physical or routine tasks rather than title holding
laborist
vsworker
  • Archaic
9.9

A person who does physical work with their hands

is the common, modern label for someone doing routine physical tasks

Antonyms

6.1

A person who does not have paid work

Compounds

137 3.1

A person who helps people in need by giving advice and support

A person who builds and fixes buildings, roads and other large structures at work sites

33 1.3

A person who puts a lot of effort into their job or tasks

25 1.1

A person who works on a farm doing jobs like planting or harvesting

A person who works in a factory doing physical work on machines and assembly lines

20 3.5

A person from another country allowed to do a job for a short time

A person people believe causes amazing events like healings that others cannot explain

A person who moves to another place to do temporary work, often on farms

A person who works in a country without legal permission to live or work

A person with special training for a specific job

A person who does a job for only a short time

7 3.6

A female bee that cannot lay eggs and gathers food and cares for the hive

A person who works with you in the same company or team

5 2.0

A person who finds, gets, or sells oil

4 2.6

A person who works on an assembly line doing the same tasks

A person who works to get equal rights and chances for minority groups

3 2.1

A person who loads and unloads ships at a dock

A person who fixes and takes care of public services like power and water

A person who helps poor or vulnerable people get support from social services

A person who works only at certain times of the year, for example during harvest or holiday seasons

A person who has learned special skills for a job

A person who makes clothes in a factory or workshop

A person who makes clothes in a factory or workshop

A person who helps hospital patients with emotional, family, and practical needs

1 2.5

A person who works for a gas company installing or fixing gas pipes and boilers

A person who studies things to find new facts at a university or lab

power worker
  • Specialized
1 3.4

A person who runs or fixes machines at a power station that makes electricity

A person who does work for a group without getting money

A train worker who operates and looks after the system that stops a train

brain-worker
  • Archaic
7.2

A person who uses thinking to solve problems and create ideas in their job

A person who has a disability and works or looks for work, bringing different skills

A person who catches lobsters for sale

livery worker
  • Archaic
8.2

A person who cares for horses and looks after the stable

A person who makes jewelry and other things from gold

A person who works at a power station and keeps the machines running

signal worker
  • Jargon
5.6

A railway yard worker who controls and fixes signals and track switches

A person who makes or repairs things made of silver

5.7

A person who works in a railway yard assembling or taking apart trains

2.1

A person who cares for gardens and cuts grass

How Skilled

specialist
352 3.9
technician
  • Specialized
184 3.7
worker
600 1.0
laborer
  • US
68 1.0

Surface Forms

worker singular
workers plural

Morphology

worker = work (transparent) = work + er

Standard agentive formation: 'work' + '-er' yields 'person who works', which a B1 learner can derive.

Etymology

Worker comes from the simple word work plus the ending -er, which means 'one who does'. So a worker is literally 'one who does work', often someone employed to do tasks or physical jobs.