| / English Dictionary |
WORKER
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Sterile member of a colony of social insects that forages for food and cares for the larvae
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("worker" is a kind of...):
insect (small air-breathing arthropod)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "worker"):
soldier (a wingless sterile ant or termite having a large head and powerful jaws adapted for defending the colony)
worker bee (sterile bee specialized to collect food and maintain the hive)
Derivation:
work (exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A person who works at a specific occupation
Example:
he is a good worker
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("worker" is a kind of...):
individual; mortal; person; somebody; someone; soul (a human being)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "worker"):
tacker (a worker who fastens things by tacking them (as with tacks or by spotwelding))
sprigger; stemmer; stripper (a worker who strips the stems from moistened tobacco leaves and binds the leaves together into books)
stringer (a worker who strings)
stemmer (a worker who makes or applies stems for artificial flowers)
stainer (a worker who stains (wood or fabric))
splitter (a worker who splits fish and removes the backbone)
splicer (a worker who splices ropes together by interweaving strands)
solderer (a worker who joins or mends with solder)
hard worker; slave; striver (someone who works as hard as a slave)
skilled worker; skilled workman; trained worker (a worker who has acquired special skills)
skidder (a worker who uses a skid to move logs)
shoveler; shoveller (a worker who shovels)
shingler (a worker who shingles roofs)
shelver (a worker who puts things (as books) on shelves)
sheller (a worker who removes shells (as of peas or oysters))
retainer; servant (a person working in the service of another (especially in the household))
seasonal; seasonal worker (a worker who finds employment only in certain seasons)
workmate (a fellow worker)
working girl (a young woman who is employed)
wiper (a worker who wipes)
winder (a worker who winds (e.g., a winch or clock or other mechanism))
washer (someone who washes things for a living)
wallah (usually in combination: person in charge of or employed at a particular thing)
unpaid worker; volunteer (a person who performs voluntary work)
twiner (someone who intertwines (e.g. threads) or forms something by twisting or interlacing)
trade unionist; union member; unionist (a worker who belongs to a trade union)
topper (a worker who makes or adds the top to something)
topper (a worker who cuts tops off (of trees or vegetables etc.))
tiler (a worker who lays tile)
tier; tier up (a worker who ties something)
thrower; throwster (a person who twists silk or rayon filaments into a thread or yarn)
toiler (one who works strenuously)
temp; temporary; temporary worker (a worker (especially in an office) hired on a temporary basis)
teaser (a worker who teases wool)
tapper (a worker who uses a tap to cut screw threads)
hanger (a worker who hangs something)
gutter (a worker who guts things (fish or buildings or cars etc.))
free-lance; free lance; freelance; freelancer; independent; self-employed person (a writer or artist who sells services to different employers without a long-term contract with any of them)
employee (a worker who is hired to perform a job)
employable (a person who is qualified and ready to work)
driver (someone who drives animals that pull a vehicle)
cornhusker (a worker who husks corn)
comber (a person who separates and straightens the fibers of cotton or wool)
accumulator; collector; gatherer (a person who is employed to collect payments (as for rent or taxes))
charcoal burner (a worker whose job is to make charcoal)
carter (someone whose work is driving carts)
boater; boatman; waterman (someone who drives or rides in a boat)
bleacher (a worker who bleaches (cloth or flour etc.))
bill poster; bill sticker; poster (someone who pastes up bills or placards on walls or billboards)
beater (a worker who rouses wild game from under cover for a hunter)
assistant; help; helper; supporter (a person who contributes to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose)
finisher (a worker who performs the last step in a manufacturing process)
caster (a worker who casts molten metal into finished products)
scrubber (a worker who uses a scrub brush to clean a surface (usually a floor or deck))
blackleg; rat; scab; strikebreaker (someone who works (or provides workers) during a strike)
ragsorter (a worker who sorts rags and old clothing for new uses (as in papermaking))
quarrier; quarryman (a man who works in a quarry)
dragger; puller; tugger (someone who pulls or tugs or drags in an effort to move something)
pruner; trimmer (a worker who thins out and trims trees and shrubs)
processor (someone who processes things (foods or photographs or applicants etc.))
plier; plyer (someone who plies a trade)
planter (a worker who puts or sets seeds or seedlings into the ground)
lamplighter ((when gas was used for streetlights) a person who lights and extinguishes streetlights)
melter (a worker who melts substances (metal or wax etc.))
moonlighter (a person who holds a second job (usually after hours))
mopper (a worker who uses a mop to clean a surface)
muzzler (someone who muzzles animals)
nailer (a worker who attaches something by nailing it)
oiler (a worker who oils engines or machinery)
part-timer (someone who works less than the customary or standard time)
peeler (a worker who peels the skins from fruits and vegetables)
Antonym:
nonworker (a person who does nothing)
Derivation:
work (be employed)
work (exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A person who acts and gets things done
Example:
he's a miracle worker
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Hypernyms ("worker" is a kind of...):
individual; mortal; person; somebody; someone; soul (a human being)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "worker"):
demon (someone extremely diligent or skillful)
busy bee; eager beaver; live wire; sharpie; sharpy (an alert and energetic person)
animator; energiser; energizer; vitaliser; vitalizer (someone who imparts energy and vitality and spirit to other people)
ball of fire; go-getter; whiz-kid; whizz-kid (someone whose career progresses rapidly)
man of action; man of deeds (someone inclined to act first and think later)
ball of fire; fireball; human dynamo; powerhouse (a highly energetic and indefatigable person)
Derivation:
work (exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity)
Sense 4
Meaning:
A member of the working class (not necessarily employed)
Example:
workers of the world--unite!
Synonyms:
prole; proletarian; worker
Classified under:
Nouns denoting people
Hypernyms ("worker" is a kind of...):
common man; common person; commoner (a person who holds no title)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "worker"):
dogsbody (a worker who has to do all the unpleasant or boring jobs that no one else wants to do)
Holonyms ("worker" is a member of...):
labor; labour; proletariat; working class (a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages)
Context examples:
Health care workers can take steps to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
(Infection Control, NIH)
Health legal aid workers help people with issues related to getting good healthcare, and getting insurance to cover certain patients and conditions.
(Legal aid organization, NCI Dictionary)
A worker who travels from place to place as an agricultural worker, ususally moving to participate in harvest activities.
(Migrant Farm Worker, NCI Thesaurus)
A 1996 U.S. law that allows workers and their families to keep their health insurance when they change or lose their jobs.
(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, NCI Dictionary)
Benzidine and its metabolic derivatives have been detected in the urine of workers exposed to direct Benzidine-based dyes and exposure is strongly associated with the occurrence of bladder cancer.
(Direct Brown 95, NCI Thesaurus)
It occurs more commonly in workers in the textile industry.
(Byssinosis, NCI Thesaurus)
Several years ago, Hurt began devising suits with graphene to protect workers against hazardous chemicals at environmental clean-up sites.
(Graphene shield shows promise in blocking mosquito bites, National Institutes of Health)
He was a good worker. He's done a heap of work for me. He never loafed on me, an' he was a joe-dandy at hammerin' a raw team into shape.
(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)
That is his main fault, but on the whole he’s a good worker.
(The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
To his dim comprehension they were as much wonder-workers as gods are to men.
(White Fang, by Jack London)
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