worker

noun

work·​er ˈwər-kər 

1

a

: one that works especially at manual or industrial labor or with a particular material

a factory worker

—often used in combination

b

: a member of the working class

2

: any of the sexually underdeveloped and usually sterile members of a colony of social ants, bees, wasps, or termites that perform most of the labor and protective duties of the colony

Synonyms of worker

• laborer
• slave

Examples of worker in a Sentence

The company is planning to hire 200 workers.

The average worker earned $1,000 more this year.

If management doesn't make the changes, the workers will go on strike.

They are both hard workers.

Recent Examples on the Web

Remote workers may even have more babies. — Jessica Guynn, USA Today, 29 June 2026

Espy said rescue workers from USA-1 had pulled three survivors from the debris, including a 9-month-old baby. — David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026

Onlookers were silent as a human chain of civil defense workers and volunteers carefully extracted the person from within the ruins. — Gonzalo Zegarra, CNN Money, 29 June 2026

Southwest is developing tools that let ground operations agents query complex policy documents conversationally, creating what Woods calls a digital worker alongside the people who serve customers in person. — Peter High, Forbes.com, 17 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing worker

• care worker
• co-worker
• day worker
• gig worker
• guest worker
• sex worker
• voluntary worker
• wonder-worker
• worker-priest

Rhymes for worker

• caseworker
• coworker
• farmworker
• woodworker

Kids Definition

worker

noun

work·​er ˈwər-kər 

1

a

: one that works

b

: a member of the working class

2

: one of the members of a colony of social ants, bees, wasps, or termites that are only partially developed sexually and that perform most of the labor and protective duties of the colony