laborer

American  

[ley-ber-er] / ˈleɪ bər ər /

noun

1. a person engaged in work that requires bodily strength rather than skill or training.

   a laborer in the field.

2. any worker.

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Other Word Forms

• underlaborer noun

Etymology

Origin of laborer

Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; see origin at labor, -er ¹

Explanation

A laborer is a worker, especially a person who does some kind of physical work. A stone mason is a laborer, but you probably wouldn't call a poet a laborer. In the old days, the word laborer implied an unskilled or menial worker, like a day laborer on a farm who might be hired at an hourly rate to haul rocks out of a field, or a street paver's assistant. Today, a laborer is thought of as someone who works with her hands, often outside. Laborer comes from labor, in Old French "work, exertion, or task," from the Latin laborem, "toil, exertion, or fatigue."

Example Sentences

This laborer wants to know what you mean by labor becoming tokenized.

From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026

The day laborer center is more than just a workplace, said Jose, who asked to withhold his last name for fear of retaliation by immigration agents.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2025

The noise is in earshot of the IDEPSCA’s day laborer center, one of five operated by the organization that have supported workers for over two decades.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2025

Tincher was now a manual laborer on one leg, but he was denied disability benefits by the Social Security Administration the following year.

From Salon • Nov. 2, 2025

My father went to work every day dressed in the blue uniform of a city laborer, but at night he showed us what it meant to love jazz and art.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

Related Words

• hand
• manual worker
• worker