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.
Mr. Rock’s funny and insightful bit came to mind as I read last month’s jobs report, which showed that the share of American men in the labor force has dipped to record lows.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 2, 2026
Addressing supply chain vulnerabilities requires prioritizing critical goods and re-skilling the labor force over many years.
From Barron's • May 26, 2026
Although the budget documents note the potential for gains from SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI, each of which have a significant labor force in the state, the government refrained from estimating the impact.
From MarketWatch • May 19, 2026
Between 2021 and 2025, their share of the labor force rose to 10% from 8%, an increase of 4.2 million workers.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
It was no better than being condemned to the garment-center labor force.
From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers
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.
