lifework

American  

[lahyf-wurk] / ˈlaɪfˈwɜrk /

noun

1. the complete or principal work, labor, or task of a lifetime.

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Etymology

Origin of lifework

First recorded in 1870–75; life + work

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lifework

This deluge of uplift is a collage of the photographer’s lifework, but he also adds: “I had Peter’s music to work from — and his music didn’t suggest darkness.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026

There followed a long period when silent films were virtually unmarketable, and the lifework of many actors and directors disappeared into warehouses or dissolved into silver.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Wiener’s lifework and his failure to predict its consequences are intimately bound up in the idea of an impending technological singularity.

From Slate ● Feb. 28, 2019

A science prodigy, he planned a career in the field until he discovered that his lifework had been usurped.

From New York Times ● Dec. 12, 2013

Now tell me why we have no papers, no printed materials written by this great artist about his lifework?

From "Chasing Vermeer" by Blue Balliett

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