1
as in job
a dull, unpleasant, or difficult piece of work
one of the labors of Hercules in classical mythology was to clean out the stables of King Augeas
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in effort
the active use of energy in producing a result
a superhuman amount of labor must have gone into designing and building the pyramids of Egypt
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in toil
very hard or unpleasant work
a political dissident forced to do six months of hard labor in the salt mines as punishment
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4
as in childbirth
the act or process of giving birth to children
the mother's labor lasted for six hours
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5
as in production
something produced by physical or intellectual effort
a small, personal film that was clearly a labor of love for the director and actors
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as in to struggle
to devote serious and sustained effort
the young lawyer labored most of the weekend over the difficult legal brief
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of labor
Ana Ceballos, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026
Although free labor can help a candidate win, volunteers are also seen as a source of risk, best restricted to such drudge work as phone banking or door knocking.
—Charles Duhigg, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
Troy Renck, Denver Post, 22 Dec. 2025
Women labored tirelessly alongside men in the fields, performed domestic work in households, advised young men to save money and go to school, and built and maintained networks that sustained local communities and transpacific ties back home in the Philippines.
—Sam Vong, The Conversation, 18 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for labor
Noun
The Democratic defections threaten to derail passage of a broad spending package that also includes funding for the State Department and the Pentagon, as well as education, health, labor and transportation agencies.
—Ana Ceballos, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026
Although free labor can help a candidate win, volunteers are also seen as a source of risk, best restricted to such drudge work as phone banking or door knocking.
—Charles Duhigg, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
Verb
For three months, the Broncos have labored, winning ugly, Payton dismissing criticism about style points and practically imploring everyone to ignore everything but the final results.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 22 Dec. 2025
Women labored tirelessly alongside men in the fields, performed domestic work in households, advised young men to save money and go to school, and built and maintained networks that sustained local communities and transpacific ties back home in the Philippines.
—Sam Vong, The Conversation, 18 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for labor
Recent Examples of Synonyms for labor
Noun
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But again, as of late, Jalen has been doing a great job of making plays for us.—
Scott Fowler,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Jan. 2026
-
The TikTok guy will even teach you how to use the tools required for the job.—
Nolan Finley The Detroit News,
Arkansas Online,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The victims, all elementary school students, got into difficulty in a frozen pond in Bonham, a city about 60 miles northeast of Dallas, triggering a desperate effort by their mother and a neighbor to save them, FOX 4 reported.—
Michael Dorgan,
FOXNews.com,
28 Jan. 2026
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The project also reflects Beijing’s broader effort to anchor long-term energy security with low-carbon baseload power.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The toil and sweat that’s behind the scenes to make this happen is admirable, and the technology advances in autonomy are inspiring.—
Sabbir Rangwala,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
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Although the marquee did not glow for quite some time, toil and hope were always behind the scenes.—
Angela George,
Sioux Falls Argus Leader,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Screenings are scheduled at Lightbox Film Center of Kleckner’s landmark feminist films, including Three Lives (1971)—the first feature-length documentary produced by an all-women crew—and Birth Film (1973), one of the earliest feminist films to document childbirth.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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From Agnes’ brutal childbirth scenes to the wrenching heartbreak when the plague hits their household and takes 11-year-old Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe), Zhao immerses you in Agnes and Will’s grief while also touching on their own individual internal tussles.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
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EngineAI confirmed that its production models are powered by NVIDIA Jetson Thor, providing up to 2000 TOPS of AI compute, along with a 360-degree LiDAR perception system.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Jan. 2026
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Reliability, flexibility, and fast, on time delivery guide development, with specifications tailored to local markets and customers, from last mile hubs and national distribution to cold storage, production facilities, and data centres.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Multiple royal watchers have claimed the prince has struggled to move beyond the fallout of his dramatic exit from royal life six years ago, citing professional setbacks and lingering personal tensions.—
Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa,
FOXNews.com,
28 Jan. 2026
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The congressman says one of his top priorities is passing a new farm bill, which has been tied up in Congress and could provide some relief to local farmers struggling with declining profits.—
James Taylor,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Think peachy-bright, brunchy, and a little flirty without the headache.—
Lanee Lee,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
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Sonny Fouts, 71, has had a headache, stomachache and trouble sleeping since seeing news reports that the 37-year-old ICU nurse had been fatally shot by ICE agents Saturday, the vet and retired musician told People.—
Theresa Braine,
New York Daily News,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The Mendelssohn work features almost five times as many instruments, and uses 99 microphones as opposed to 12 for the Mozart recording.—
Sheila Regan,
Twin Cities,
23 Jan. 2026
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Her work has appeared in Annulet, Changes Review, blush lit, and elsewhere.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Labor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/labor. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
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