worked

variants or wrought
Definition of workednext
past tense of work
1
2
3
as in served
to have a certain purpose the human kidneys work as a filtering system for the blood

Synonyms & Similar Words

4
as in performed
to produce a desired effect this headache remedy takes half an hour to work

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

5
6
as in operated
to control the mechanical operation of show me how to work the machine

Synonyms & Similar Words

7
8

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of worked Eric worked for a time as a software developer in a few start-ups, and Owen as an analyst at a venture-capital firm. Eric Zwick, The Atlantic, 14 Sep. 2026 What worked was giving people something real to discuss and share, rather than asking them to absorb another leadership message. Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026 Investigators determined her disappearance was suspicious and worked with FBI agents to track the girl and the man to Oakland using interviews, cellphone data and surveillance footage, police said in a news release. Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 14 Sep. 2026 Ann O’Leary, OpenAI’s Vice President of Global Policy, worked with its authors, Assembly member Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, Assembly member Buffy Wicks, and Senator Steve Padilla. Emily Forlini, Fortune, 14 Sep. 2026 The digital content marketer returned to his hometown of Ulyanovsk in 2025 and worked remotely for clients in other countries. ABC News, 14 Sep. 2026 Graham Scott was a Premier League referee for a decade and also worked as a video assistant referee over 100 times. Graham Scott, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026 Mackie got his start doing drawings for Golden Age costume designer Jean Louis, then worked as an assistant to Edith Head. Whitney Friedlander, Variety, 14 Sep. 2026 To many in the LGBTQ+ community, the notion of unconditional love might as well be a fairy tale; meaningful relationships must be worked for, maintained, and protected—and as such, are rarely taken for granted. Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for worked
Verb
  • The use of chemical weapons would add to mounting human rights abuses and atrocities by both sides in a war that has created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
    Lauren Morganbesser, semafor.com, 6 Sep. 2026
  • In May 2020, Naming the Lost, a public art project, created temporary memorials to casualties in all five boroughs.
    Robert W. Snyder, New York Daily News, 6 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Home-server owners will already understand the attraction, and the pro’s solved this ages ago but spent a lot more than this.
    New Atlas, New Atlas, 18 Sep. 2026
  • His problems were tough and solved dangerously, if conveniently, as required by producer-writer Bruce Geller’s teleplay.
    Ed Olmstead, HollywoodReporter, 17 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • The court had unsealed an arrest warrant for Ronald Marapon dela Rosa, who served as national police chief under Duterte.
    ABC News, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • After Abrahamson was accused in 2003 of stealing tens of thousands of dollars from an ex-girlfriend and her friends in a fake investment scheme, he was found guilty of violating his probation and served about seven years in state prison.
    Kevin Fixler September 16, Idaho Statesman, 16 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Hundreds crowded around the Adidas store as the KU pep band and cheerleaders performed for about a half hour.
    Taylor Eldridge, Kansas City Star, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Emergency crews performed life-saving measures before Blue was pronounced dead at the scene.
    Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • She’s haunted by her divorce from Donn, and her greatest fear is being alone, which is becoming more and more of a real possibility, especially since her family has largely moved away.
    Tom Smyth, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Diane was a blender of hair and plaid, while Aurora moved solidly, pushing a wheelbarrow.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Since 2018, Hialeah’s libraries operated as their own independent city department, answering directly to the mayor and council rather than sitting under a larger agency.
    Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 18 Sep. 2026
  • An onboard safety pilot remained present throughout the flight but never operated the aircraft’s controls.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Admittedly the continent has labored as the AI hyper-scalers of America and China have produced products (and valuations) that make the eyes pop.
    Kamal Ahmed, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Though Morris labored through a 29-pitch first inning and gave up a run, Prielipp more than did his part, throwing five scoreless innings to follow.
    Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 2 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Aluminum targets tougher battery demands The coated aluminum can be used for battery enclosures and casings, where corrosion protection can help improve component durability.
    Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 19 Sep. 2026
  • The disclosure on Thursday, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, came as Anthropic published a new set of data that showed a rapid increase in how much the lab used AI to develop its new models.
    Cristina Criddle, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Worked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/worked. Accessed 20 Sep. 2026.

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