labour
(US & Austral. labor) noun 1 work, especially hard physical work. 2 workers collectively. 3 (Labour) the Labour Party. 4 the process of childbirth. verb 1 work hard. 2 work at an unskilled manual job. 3 have difficulty despite working hard. 4 move with difficulty. 5 (labour under) be misled by (a mistaken belief). PHRASES a labour of love a task done for pleasure, not reward. labour the point elaborate something at excessive length. ORIGIN Latin labor toil, trouble.
Perform another search of the Compact Oxford English Dictionary
About this dictionary
The Compact Oxford English Dictionary of Current English contains 145,000 words, phrases, and definitions.
Find out more about Oxford's range of English dictionaries
Sign up for the AskOxford Word of the Day
Search the Little Oxford Dictionary of Quotations
Search the Concise Dictionary of First Names
|