as in labor
very hard or unpleasant work
the donkeywork involved in setting up one's own start-up software firm
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for donkeywork
Noun
-
While the chain's restaurant margin decreased because of commodity and labor inflation, some of that decline was offset by higher sales, according to the earnings report.—
Natassia Paloma,
USA Today,
12 May 2026 -
That was certainly true on Monday, as Lamont signed a new 124-page labor bill into law.—
Andrew Brown,
Hartford Courant,
12 May 2026
Noun
-
Bahamian authorities assisted with rescue efforts, but did not deploy anyone to the scene, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) told CBS News.—
Ingrid Vasquez,
PEOPLE,
13 May 2026
-
That first strike came courtesy of Catherine Dubois, a versatile depth forward, who was moved onto Montreal’s top line beside Poulin and Laura Stacey in an effort to spread out the team’s offense.—
Hailey Salvian,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
Noun
-
Books in this category address war, gun violence, natural disasters, domestic violence, human trafficking, slavery and genocide, physical fighting, and more.—
BrieAnna J. Frank,
USA Today,
7 May 2026
-
In 1575 Cervantes was on board a ship to Spain (and planning to leave the army) when he was captured by pirates and sold into slavery in Algiers.—
René Ostberg,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
7 May 2026
Noun
-
With another o-for in the books, the impending free agent declined to talk about his struggles following Monday’s game.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
12 May 2026
-
In the aftermath, Mad's sister, Annabel, becomes a recluse, and Mad struggles to keep the family's bar afloat as the sisters become the center of damaging gossip.—
Carly Tagen-Dye,
PEOPLE,
11 May 2026
Noun
-
Symptoms start one to eight weeks after exposure and initially can include fatigue, fever and muscle aches, according to the CDC.—
Allison Kiehl,
Chicago Tribune,
9 May 2026
-
Snell has been on the IL since late March with left shoulder fatigue.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 May 2026
Noun
-
Instead, that lap turned into eleven more years of touring, sweat, new music, and reconnecting with the fans who made this all possible in the first place.—
Nina Corcoran,
Pitchfork,
7 May 2026
-
For shoppers who want the calming effect of deep pressure stimulation but tend to overheat, these three options are designed to deliver the pressure without the sweat.—
Samantha Agate,
Kansas City Star,
7 May 2026
Noun
-
The youngster was making his second appearance for his new club, against AEK Larnaca back in October, and a grind of a Conference League group game was still level.—
Matt Woosnam,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
-
In some ways, the grind from rookie minicamp to OTAs to training camp somewhat mirrors his own journey.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
11 May 2026
Noun
-
Common symptoms people experience are headaches, muscle aches, serious fevers, coughing, chest pains, shortness of breath and nausea, according to Kaiser Permanente.—
Noe Padilla,
USA Today,
7 May 2026
-
The pains and pleasures of family life are top of mind for her.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
7 May 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Donkeywork.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/donkeywork. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
