drudgery

[ druhj-uh-ree ]

/ ˈdrʌdʒ ə ri /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR drudgery ON THESAURUS.COM

noun, plural drudg·er·ies.

menial, distasteful, dull, or hard work.

Nearby words

drowsy, drub, drubbing, drucilla, drudge, drudgery, drudgework, drug, drug abuse, drug addict, drug baron

Origin of drudgery

First recorded in 1540–50; drudge + -ery

SYNONYMS FOR drudgery

See work.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR drudgery ON THESAURUS.COM

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for drudgery

We coo over how cute our cat is and minimize the drudgery of cleaning the litter box.
Why Didn’t Camille Dump Bill Cosby?|Amanda Marcotte|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That is said with zero disrespect for the hard work, and often drudgery, that those jobs entail.
Jobs Report Shows Unemployment Steady, but There’s Underlying Trouble|Zachary Karabell|March 9, 2012|DAILY BEAST
For many Afghan women, a life of violence, drudgery and ill health is the best they can expect.
Will Fawzia Koofi Be Afghanistan's First Female President?|Fawzia Koofi|January 6, 2012|DAILY BEAST
On Monday she was scheduled for a full day of press to promote the series, drudgery under the best of circumstances.
Supermodel Iman Walked Out on Me|Kevin Sessums|November 10, 2010|DAILY BEAST

And then there are folks like Wesselman-Pierce who just want a break from the drudgery of real life.
Catfish's Photo Fraud Victim|Gina Piccalo|October 4, 2010|DAILY BEAST
It was something to get rid of the drudgery of toil, and escape the snubbing and rebuffs of her present vocation.
Secret Service or Recollections of a City Detective|Andrew Forrester
Disappointment, drudgery, oblivion, and poverty are often the portion of the less fortunate ones.
Inventors & Inventions|Henry Robinson
He was a lad of superior organization, and so, although obedient and obliging, had an extreme distaste for drudgery.
Cleveland Past and Present|Maurice Joblin
How could he think of work as a drudgery, how others could look upon it as such was incomprehensible to him.
Wilford Woodruff|Matthias F. Cowley
He did the cooking for the other men in the fort, the dish-washing and the drudgery.
White Fang|Jack London

British Dictionary definitions for drudgery

drudgery

/ (ˈdrʌdʒərɪ) /

noun plural -eries

hard, menial, and monotonous work

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012