as in laborer
a person who does very hard or dull work
I worked for several years as a gofer and general dogsbody for a London publishing house
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of dogsbody
Having progressed from bottle washing and being a general dogsbody to a youth strength and conditioning coach, Bunce served as Southampton’s head of athletic development between 2011 and 2014, working closely with youngsters such as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Luke Shaw.
—
Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 17 Dec. 2024
Mercedes is everybody’s dogsbody, at home and at work.
—Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2024
From 1938 to 1940 Nick Clifford was on Mount Rushmore, first as dogsbody and wood-chopper, then as labourer and winchman.
—The Economist, 1 Aug. 2019
Charley, who already has a casual job with Del (Steve Buscemi), a local horse trainer, now becomes his full-time dogsbody, or nagsbody—cleaning the stables, driving the truck, or walking Lean on Pete.
—Rachel Aviv, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2018
Chris Waugh, The Athletic, 17 Dec. 2024
Mercedes is everybody’s dogsbody, at home and at work.
—Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2024
From 1938 to 1940 Nick Clifford was on Mount Rushmore, first as dogsbody and wood-chopper, then as labourer and winchman.
—The Economist, 1 Aug. 2019
Charley, who already has a casual job with Del (Steve Buscemi), a local horse trainer, now becomes his full-time dogsbody, or nagsbody—cleaning the stables, driving the truck, or walking Lean on Pete.
—Rachel Aviv, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dogsbody
Noun
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Since the Covid-19 pandemic, the city has seen a decline in large scale construction projects, leaving many laborers without steady, long-term employment.—
Karina Tsui,
CNN Money,
10 Sep. 2025
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Local 724, the Hollywood laborers’ group, in a landmark election that took place Friday.—
Katie Kilkenny,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Rural farmers could receive payments, urban workers could send money home and millions joined the formal economy for the first time.—
Cornelia C. Walther,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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It’s gotten so bad that, in one of the largest H-2A criminal cases ever, a federal judge described the abuse of these workers as a form of modern-day slavery.—
Max Blau,
ProPublica,
16 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dogsbody.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dogsbody. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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