worker
Pluralworkers
- 1A person who works, especially one who does a job to earn money, often with their hands.
Every worker at the factory gets a lunch break at noon.
The workers built the new road in just two months.
UsageOften with another word: factory worker. A hard worker works very hard.
Similarlaborer, employee, workman, hand
Oppositeemployer
Note
- 2An ant, bee or similar insect that does the work of the colony, like finding food, and usually does not have young.
Like a helper in a big family who does chores but never becomes a parent.
Each worker carries tiny bits of food back to the nest.
Thousands of workers swarmed out to defend the hive.
UsagePeople often say worker ant or worker bee.
- 3A part of a computer program that does jobs in the background while other parts keep running.
Like having extra helpers in a kitchen, so one can cook while another washes the dishes.
The app uses a worker to load images so the screen does not freeze.
Background workers handle the slow jobs while you keep typing.
Note
Practice
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Origin
From Middle English werkere, made from "work" plus "-er". It replaced the older word "wright".
Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 3 facts
- Worker derives from Middle English werkere. en.wiktionary.org
- Worker is formed from work plus -er. en.wiktionary.org
- Worker replaced the older word wright. en.wiktionary.org