labor

American  

[lay-ber] / ˈleɪ bər /

especially British, labour

noun

• labors
  plural

1. productive activity, especially for the sake of economic gain.

   Antonyms:

   rest, leisure, idleness

2. the body of persons engaged in such activity, especially those working for wages.

   Synonyms:

   working class

3. this body of persons considered as a class (distinguished from management andcapital ).

4. physical or mental work, especially of a hard or fatiguing kind; toil.

   Synonyms:

   exertion

   Antonyms:

   rest, leisure, idleness

5. a job or task done or to be done.

6. the physical effort and periodic uterine contractions of childbirth.

   Synonyms:

   delivery, parturition

7. the interval from the onset of these contractions to childbirth.

8. Also called Labor Department. Informal. Labor. the Department of Labor.

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verb (used without object)

• labors,
  present (3rd person singular)
• labored,
  past participle,  past
• laboring
  present participle

1. to perform labor; exert one's powers of body or mind; work; toil.

   Synonyms:

   drudge

   Antonyms:

   rest

2. to strive, as toward a goal; work hard (often followed byfor ).

   to labor for peace.

3. to act, behave, or function at a disadvantage (usually followed byunder ).

   to labor under a misapprehension.

4. to be in the actual process of giving birth.

5. to roll or pitch heavily, as a ship.

verb (used with object)

• labors,
  present (3rd person singular)
• labored,
  past participle,  past
• laboring
  present participle

1. to develop or dwell on in excessive detail.

   Don't labor the point.

   Synonyms:

   overdo, belabor

2. to burden or tire.

   to labor the reader with unnecessary detail.

3. British Dialect. to work or till (soil or the like).

adjective

1. of or relating to workers, their associations, or working conditions.

   labor reforms.

labor British  

/ ˈleɪbə /

verb

1. the US spelling of labour

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labor Scientific  

/ lā′bər /

1. The process by which the birth of a mammal occurs, beginning with contractions of the uterus and ending with the expulsion of the fetus and the placenta.

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labor Cultural  

1. The physical processes at the end of a normal pregnancy, including opening of the cervix and contractions of the uterus, that lead to the birth of the baby.

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Usage

What are other ways to say labor? Labor refers to mental or physical work, especially that which is hard or fatiguing. When should you use labor instead of work, drudgery, or toil? Find out on Thesaurus.com.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• prelabor
  noun
• outlabor
  verb (used with object)
• overlabor
  verb (used with object)
• antilabor
  adjective
• laborless
  adjective
• nonlabor
  adjective
• prolabor
  adjective
• unlaboring
  adjective
• laboringly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• labors
  plural

Participles

• laboring
  present
• labored
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• labor
  simple
• labors
  simple
• have labored
  perfect
• has labored
  perfect
• am laboring
  progressive
• are laboring
  progressive
• is laboring
  progressive
• have been laboring
  perfect progressive
• has been laboring
  perfect progressive

Past

• labored
  simple
• had labored
  perfect
• was laboring
  progressive
• were laboring
  progressive
• had been laboring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will labor
  simple
• will have labored
  perfect
• will be laboring
  progressive
• will have been laboring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of labor

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English labour, from Old French, from Latin labōr- (stem of labor ) “work”

Explanation

Although the word labor seems to suggest tough, physical work that makes you sweat, any type of work, whether physical or mental, can be considered labor. Labor is usually associated with very hard, physical work, suggesting fatigue and aching muscles. In fact, a woman giving birth is said to be in labor, giving true meaning to the phrase "labor of love." The word can also be used as a verb, as in "He had to labor many years to pay off his debt." That sense of hard work fits in with the Labor Party of some nations, a party generally favored by and supporting the working class.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

labor labors labored laboring

At the event at the Ironworkers Training Center in La Palma organized by labor leaders to oppose the wealth tax, apprentices attended workshops about rigging and collective bargaining rights.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

“The biggest issue in manufacturing is a labor shortage,” Lixandru said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

And instead of warm days in the summer, Boulder gets more heat waves that lead to “premature deaths” and “adverse economic impacts,” particularly on outdoor labor sectors like agriculture and construction.

From Slate ● Oct. 5, 2026

A deterioration in the labor market or a rotation out of European government bonds could help—along with substantial policy shifts by the federal government.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

A boy who looked like he was my age told me his uncle took a piece of fruit that did not belong to him and was sentenced to five years of hard labor in Aswan.

From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman

Aleys acknowledges the contentment of the Beguines, understanding that their communal labors knit their “hopes, their labor, even their disagreements” as “strands in a single weave.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 4, 2026

After all, since 1776, millions of Irishmen and women and their descendants have helped make America great through their labors.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 11, 2025

Most weeks, this column labors to avoid sentimentality.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 9, 2025

As Rams coach Sean McVay and Snead navigate their ninth season together, they can’t avoid seeing throughout the NFL the fruits — and competitive challenges — created by their labors and success.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 2025

He labors under an affliction in his speech, acquired through long habit of degradation or sudden excess of horror.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson

Fields’s opening sentence spans 26 words, yet it never sounds labored.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

The noise of backhoes, cranes and bulldozers echoed across Colombia's quake-hit cities on Sunday as workers labored to remove rubble, though the chance of finding survivors was slim a week after the disaster.

From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026

Last Thanksgiving, Megan Thee Stallion labored for days to prepare an elaborate holiday dinner for then-boyfriend Klay Thompson and his family.

From Salon ● Apr. 30, 2026

In many years on dairy farms, the worker often labored for 10 hours with no breaks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026

Downstairs again, he gathered the girl’s clothing together, stuffed every piece into the suitcases, then labored back down the hall once again and up the stairs.

From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick

With a band laboring in the pit, the stage became a dance floor.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

A quarter-century Jean’s senior, David is trying to finish a stalled book project, laboring in the shadow of his more prolific and successful wife, Ann.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2026

Montiel, 62, said Chavez’s legacy continues to reverberate as the union has pushed for improved working conditions for people laboring in extreme heat, at times without adequate breaks or water.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026

This base allowed to soar last Sunday’s spire of victory at another Jack Hughes’s laboring hand.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026

She noticed an amateur jazz trio laboring through standards on a park corner.

From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson

Related Words

• activity
• employment
• energy
• industry
• job