: a plan or method to circumvent a problem (as in computer software) without eliminating it

Examples of work-around in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Competing globally required innovative financing like sukuk, which provided special religious work-arounds in order to pass Islamic sharia law that forbids providing capital in exchange for interest, one of the core incentives for taking financial risk. Christiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 21 Nov. 2023 The arrangement was a highly unusual work-around; by law, members of Ways and Means cannot share citizens’ tax information with anyone outside the committee. Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2023 Users pioneer emergent behaviors; hack together work-arounds, many of which lead to new features; give platforms their cultural relevance; and provide the steady flood of engagement that Silicon Valley leaders can monetize. Taylor Lorenz, The Atlantic, 7 Oct. 2023 That probably explains why liberals lately have been content to wage war with the court using political rhetoric or strategic policy work-arounds, allowing the public’s increasingly low esteem for the Supreme Court speak for itself. Jason Linkins, The New Republic, 6 Oct. 2023 Caltech has a new admission work-around Aug. 31, 2023 Talk about the housing proposal began circulating in public earlier this week. Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, 14 Sep. 2023 Luckily Spaniards came up with the best work-around—and it’s called tortilla vaga. Katie Button, Bon Appétit, 12 Sep. 2023 Though not all concerts will be listed by the name of the performer (some of the more high-profile artists do not have their names attached to the package), users can use a work-around by searching the name of the venue and the date included to ID any unnamed artists. Rachel Desantis, Peoplemag, 31 Aug. 2023 Mandate and style worked together to make risers proliferate, a development that was not considered discriminatory as long as buildings provided work-arounds. Curbed, 19 July 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'work-around.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1961, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of work-around was in 1961

Dictionary Entries Near work-around

Cite this Entry

“Work-around.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/work-around. Accessed 11 Dec. 2023.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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