as in labor
very hard or unpleasant work
the donkeywork involved in setting up one's own start-up software firm
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for donkeywork
Noun
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However, energy analysts point to the high costs of setting up in a new remote environment in harsh weather without local infrastructure, labor, or equipment.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
22 Oct. 2025 -
In the years that followed, the city lost its labor negotiator and, later, the assistant city attorney who worked on the negotiations.—
David Clarey,
jsonline.com,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Smaller efforts popped up in Greenland over the years, but nothing came to fruition.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
22 Oct. 2025
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Supporting the Army’s next phase The M-SHORAD Increment 4 effort is a major part of the Army’s broader modernization strategy.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Once freed from slavery, Washington toiled in coal mines, worked as a janitor in exchange for formal education and became a great American orator and leader of the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama.—
Jennifer Smith Richards,
ProPublica,
22 Oct. 2025
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How the stakeholders juggled those diametrically opposed ideas—liberty and self-governance but also slavery and their horrific treatment of the Native American population—is the part of the human experience that Burns is most interested in exploring.—
Carlo Versano,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Stephens said there were signs of a struggle, and Thomas' body had been dragged about 180 feet into the woods.—
Bill Bowden,
Arkansas Online,
24 Oct. 2025
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Passmore reflects on Shakur’s life and considers how her story highlights the broader struggles and resilience of Black activists whose work is marginalized in mainstream histories.—
Fiction Non Fiction,
Literary Hub,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Sometimes AbdulKareem would vomit from hunger and fatigue.—
Clayton Dalton,
New Yorker,
18 Oct. 2025
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Others point to emotional maturity or social fatigue.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The Dolphins couldn’t get off the field or create enough consistent offense to make a bad Browns team sweat.—
Zac Jackson,
New York Times,
19 Oct. 2025
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As a caregiver, never go to the hospital or doctor’s office in sweats, looking like a train wreck.—
Kat McGowan,
NPR,
18 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Years before gaining notoriety as a movie star through his role in one of the most successful film franchises in history, Ludacris was simply another artist on the grind trying to figure it out.—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
22 Oct. 2025
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In what was a defensive grind at times, the star of the show on offense was Seahawks receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba who continued his excellent third season in the NFL.—
Ben Morse,
CNN Money,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Colleagues who failed to take similar pains earned his everlasting disdain.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
21 Oct. 2025
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Like regular depression, SAD can cause negative feelings like hopelessness, worthlessness, irritability, and guilt; fatigue or reduced energy; a loss of interest in hobbies and activities; and even physical aches and pains (including headaches, cramps, and digestive problems).—
Maggie O'Neill,
SELF,
20 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Donkeywork.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/donkeywork. Accessed 27 Oct. 2025.
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