jobs

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of job.

   The new factory created hundreds of jobs in the region.

   He juggled two jobs to pay off his student loans.

   Note

   A regular plural, made with -s, and it carries every sense of the singular. That includes tasks, paid positions and batch runs on a computer, and even the old sense of corrupt official business done for private gain. When it means paid roles it counts positions, so a factory creates jobs. The same spelling is also the verb's present form. A number or determiner in front (two jobs, odd jobs) marks the noun.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present of job.

   On the weekly wrestling show he jobs to the champion, losing on cue to make the star look strong.

   The contractor jobs out the electrical work to a licensed specialist.

   Note

   Here the spelling belongs to the verb, used after he, she, it or a singular noun. Its grammar shifts with meaning. It takes an object when it means speculating in securities or subcontracting work. It stands alone for doing odd work for hire or, in slang, for taking a loss submissively. A following object or preposition, rather than a determiner in front, separates it from the plural noun.

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