English dictionary
working
nounPronunciation
/ˈwɜːkɪŋ/
/ˈwɝkɪŋ/
Audio pronunciation
Parts of speech
Definitions
noun
- (usually in the plural) Operation; action.
- Method of operation.
- The incidental or subsidiary calculations performed in solving an overall problem.
- Fermentation.
- (of bodies of water) Becoming full of a vegetable substance.
- A place where work is carried on.
verb
- To do a specific task by employing physical or mental powers.
- To effect by gradual degrees.
- To embroider with thread.
- To set into action.
- To cause to ferment.
- To ferment.
- To exhaust, by working.
- To shape, form, or improve a material.
- To operate in a certain place, area, or speciality.
- To operate in or through; as, to work the phones.
- To provoke or excite; to influence.
- To use or manipulate to one’s advantage.
- To cause to happen or to occur as a consequence.
- To cause to work.
- To function correctly; to act as intended; to achieve the goal designed for.
- To influence.
- To effect by gradual degrees; as, to work into the earth.
- To move in an agitated manner.
- To behave in a certain way when handled
- (with two objects) To cause (someone) to feel (something); to do unto somebody (something, whether good or bad).
- To hurt; to ache.
adjective
- That is or are functioning.
- That suffices but requires additional work.
- In paid employment.
- Of or relating to employment.
- Enough to allow one to use something.
- Used in real life; practical.
Example sentences
Be sure to check your working.
the abandoned mine workings
He’s working in a bar.
he worked his way through the crowd
He worked the levers.
The mine was worked until the last scrap of ore had been extracted.
He used pliers to work the wire into shape.
she works the night clubs
The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy.
She knows how to work the system.
I cannot work a miracle.
He is working his servants hard.
he pointed at the car and asked, "Does it work"?; he looked at the bottle of pain pills, wondering if they would work; my plan didn’t work
They worked on her to join the group.
A ship works in a heavy sea.
this dough does not work easily; the soft metal works well
a working ventilator
a working copy of the script
working mothers
the working week
a working knowledge of computers
The working minimum focus distance is the distance from the closest focusable subject to the lens.