Definitions for labor
ˈleɪ bərla·bor

Princeton's WordNet(3.93 / 24 votes)Rate this definition:

1. labor, labour, working class, proletariat(noun)

   a social class comprising those who do manual labor or work for wages

   "there is a shortage of skilled labor in this field"

2. labor, labour, toil(noun)

   productive work (especially physical work done for wages)

   "his labor did not require a great deal of skill"

3. parturiency, labor, labour, confinement, lying-in, travail, childbed(noun)

   concluding state of pregnancy; from the onset of contractions to the birth of a child

   "she was in labor for six hours"

4. labor movement, trade union movement, labor(noun)

   an organized attempt by workers to improve their status by united action (particularly via labor unions) or the leaders of this movement

5. British Labour Party, Labour Party, Labour, Labor(noun)

   a political party formed in Great Britain in 1900; characterized by the promotion of labor's interests and formerly the socialization of key industries

6. Department of Labor, Labor Department, Labor, DoL(noun)

   the federal department responsible for promoting the working conditions of wage earners in the United States; created in 1913

7. undertaking, project, task, labor(verb)

   any piece of work that is undertaken or attempted

   "he prepared for great undertakings"

8. tug, labor, labour, push, drive(verb)

   strive and make an effort to reach a goal

   "She tugged for years to make a decent living"; "We have to push a little to make the deadline!"; "She is driving away at her doctoral thesis"

9. labor, labour, toil, fag, travail, grind, drudge, dig, moil(verb)

   work hard

   "She was digging away at her math homework"; "Lexicographers drudge all day long"

10. labor, labour(verb)

    undergo the efforts of childbirth

Wiktionary(2.00 / 2 votes)Rate this definition:

1. labor(Noun)

   Effort expended on a particular task; toil, work.

2. labor(Noun)

   Workers collectively; the workforce; the working class.

3. labor(Noun)

   The labor union movement; organized labor.

4. labor(Noun)

   The act of a mother giving birth or the time period during which a mother gives birth.

5. labor(Verb)

   spelling of labour; see British/Commonwealth entry for definitions, etymology, pronunciation, translations, etc.

6. Labor(ProperNoun)

   The Australian Labor Party.

Webster Dictionary(4.00 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Labor(noun)

   physical toil or bodily exertion, especially when fatiguing, irksome, or unavoidable, in distinction from sportive exercise; hard, muscular effort directed to some useful end, as agriculture, manufactures, and like; servile toil; exertion; work

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

2. Labor(noun)

   intellectual exertion; mental effort; as, the labor of compiling a history

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

3. Labor(noun)

   that which requires hard work for its accomplishment; that which demands effort

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

4. Labor(noun)

   travail; the pangs and efforts of childbirth

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

5. Labor(noun)

   any pang or distress

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

6. Labor(noun)

   the pitching or tossing of a vessel which results in the straining of timbers and rigging

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

7. Labor(noun)

   a measure of land in Mexico and Texas, equivalent to an area of 177/ acres

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

8. Labor(noun)

   to exert muscular strength; to exert one's strength with painful effort, particularly in servile occupations; to work; to toil

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

9. Labor(noun)

   to exert one's powers of mind in the prosecution of any design; to strive; to take pains

   Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

10. Labor(noun)

    to be oppressed with difficulties or disease; to do one's work under conditions which make it especially hard, wearisome; to move slowly, as against opposition, or under a burden; to be burdened; -- often with under, and formerly with of

    Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

11. Labor(noun)

    to be in travail; to suffer the pangs of childbirth

    Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

12. Labor(noun)

    to pitch or roll heavily, as a ship in a turbulent sea

    Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

13. Labor(verb)

    to work at; to work; to till; to cultivate by toil

    Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

14. Labor(verb)

    to form or fabricate with toil, exertion, or care

    Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

15. Labor(verb)

    to prosecute, or perfect, with effort; to urge stre/uously; as, to labor a point or argument

    Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

16. Labor(verb)

    to belabor; to beat

    Etymology: [OE. labouren, F. labourer, L. laborare. See Labor, n.]

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. labor

   The act and process of work or employment.

   The local labor laws were very effective.

   Submitted by MaryC on March 8, 2020  

Anagrams for labor »

1. lobar

2. Balor

How to pronounce labor?

1. 

   Alex

   US English

   

   Daniel

   British

   

   Karen

   Australian

   

   Veena

   Indian

How to say labor in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of labor in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of labor in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of labor in a Sentence

1. Sara Goldrick-Rab:

   As a college, if we think providing decently paid on campus work promotes retention, then it isn't just a labor issue, it could cost the university a little more, perhaps, than employing other folks. But it could save money if it keeps people in college.

2. Hla Myint:

   I don't want my son to do this kind of hard labor.

3. Barack Obama:

   Right now, the rules of global trade too often undermine our values and put our workers and businesses at a disadvantage, tPP allows America – and not countries like China – to write the rules of the road in the 21st century, which is especially important in a region as dynamic as the Asia-Pacific. Signed in February 2016, the deal was supposed to provoke investment among the 12 regions, which together make up about 40 percent of the global economy, the BBC reported at the time. However, the countries involved needed to ratify the agreement in order for it to actually go into effect. Trump’s presidency, which began less than a year later, complicated that. President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the trade deal through an executive order in January 2017. Last month, the remaining 11 countries signed a deal without the U.S. Delegates rally against the The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal at the Democratic National Convention in 2016. ( Reuters/Carlos Barria) Opponents of the deal, including labor unions, argued it would be a threat to manufacturing jobs and encourage exports of jobs to lower-wage countries overseas. If TPP would be enacted, the U.S. would lose 448,000 jobs, according to a study from Tufts University’s Global and Environment Institute. In comparison, the study found a total job loss of 771,000 across all 12 nations involved in the deal combined. Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, broke with the President Barack Obama administration in opposing the deal. Hillary Clinton expressed concern that it would benefit drug countries and would n’t combat currency manipulation, Time magazine reported. President Trump once called TPP a.

4. Ulf Rinne:

   In the mid to long-term they can of course help to alleviate the demographic problems in Germany, in particularly if we as a society manage to successfully integrate them into the labor market, but this is of course a challenge that faces us, there is no sure-fire success.

5. Lee Yumi:

   When it catches them, it sends them back (to North Korea), where they face torture, internment in a labor camp and sometimes death.

Images & Illustrations of labor

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