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hackwork

hackwork

1 9.0
Low-quality work done quickly to meet a deadline
  • noun
  • /ˈhækˌwɜrk/
translation icon : trabajo mediocre
  • Many magazines publish hackwork that relies on clichés rather than original ideas.

Examples

  • In comparison with the fiction I was used to reading, my fantasy writer's writing seemed like redundant, cliché-ridden hackwork.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • Everything since has been contemptible, vapid hackwork.

    Blog text (21)
  • We're not doing anything like that hackwork, and you know it.

    Fiction book (1991)
  • "His only way of fighting them was humble hackwork."

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Anthony saw that he'd never been more than hackwork for her.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • "It ended with 'to-witta-woo,' so I immediately pegged it as hackwork written the day before.

    Academic text (2009)
  • Though he was smiling, complimenting, and making connections, it was pure hackwork, not real careerist art, and he would have stopped if he had known what else to do at a party.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • The question is if there's any universe in which Wiseman could transcend the hyperactive hackwork of his previous films and make something like that into a movie worth watching.

    Blog text (29)
  • It's almost convincing, and dare I say that with a good editor and fact-checker, this guy could make a decent living churning out hackwork crime novels and screenplays.

    Blog text (29)
  • The book was filled with hackwork, lacking the creativity and depth that readers expect.

Synonyms

hackery
vshackwork
  • Literature
1 8.8

Work made quickly for money that lacks skill or new ideas

is made fast or mechanically without focus on earning money

Antonyms

2.1

How good something is

How Good

masterpiece
156 3.8
great job
  • Informal
284 1.0
hackwork
1 9.0

Surface Forms

hackwork singular
hackworks plural

Morphology

hackwork = hack + work (transparent) = hack + work

The meaning is directly the type of 'work' produced by a 'hack' (low-quality professional), a straightforward compound.

Etymology

Hackwork comes from hack, which long ago meant a person hired to do simple, routine jobs, a 'hired hand'. So hackwork is work done quickly and without care, often lacking originality or quality.