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

According to tradition, Caedmon worked as a laborer at Whitby Abbey in North Yorkshire.

From Science Daily • May 17, 2026

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

From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026

A pair of blue and yellow earplugs dangle on Jose’s neck while waiting for work as a day laborer out of the Home Depot in Cypress Park.

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

Now look at him, a common laborer for the Electricity Supply Board and a house that’s a disgrace.

From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt

Related Words

• hand
• manual worker
• worker