labor force
Americannoun
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(in the United States) the body of people who are at least 16 years old and are either employed or available for employment.
Etymology
Origin of labor force
First recorded in 1880–85
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In the longer run, the labor force could continue to shrink.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 3, 2026
Start with the decline in the unemployment rate: The chief reason why it fell was because almost 400,000 people dropped out of the labor force.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 3, 2026
Whatever changes AI has in store for the labor force, it won’t change human nature.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 24, 2026
The Office for Budget Responsibility-which also hiked its unemployment forecast earlier this month-cited new entrants to the labor force struggling to find work as a key sign of weakness in the market.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026
They slipped in and out of the box of peeling gray, making no stir in the neighborhood, no sound in the labor force, and no wave in the mayor’s office.
From "The Bluest Eye" by Toni Morrison
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
