LABOR Synonyms: 225 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the noun 'labor' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of labor are drudgery , grind , toil , travail , and work . While all these words mean "activity involving effort or exertion," labor applies to physical or intellectual work involving great and often strenuous exertion. // farmers demanding fair compensation for their labor

Q: Where would 'drudgery' be a reasonable alternative to 'labor'?

The words drudgery and labor can be used in similar contexts, but drudgery suggests dull and irksome labor. // an editorial job with a good deal of drudgery

Q: When is it sensible to use 'grind' instead of 'labor'?

The words grind and labor are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, grind implies labor exhausting to mind or body. // the grind of the assembly line

Q: When might 'toil' be a better fit than 'labor'?

The synonyms toil and labor are sometimes interchangeable, but toil implies prolonged and fatiguing labor. // his lot would be years of back-breaking toil

Q: When could 'travail' be used to replace 'labor'?

While in some cases nearly identical to labor , travail is bookish for labor involving pain or suffering. // years of travail were lost when the house burned

Q: When would 'work' be a good substitute for 'labor'?

Although the words work and labor have much in common, work may imply activity of body, of mind, of a machine, or of a natural force. // too tired to do any work

labor 1 of 2

noun

ˈlā-bər

Definition of labor

as in job

a dull, unpleasant, or difficult piece of work one of the labors of Hercules in classical mythology was to clean out the stables of King Augeas

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in effort

the active use of energy in producing a result a superhuman amount of labor must have gone into designing and building the pyramids of Egypt

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in toil

very hard or unpleasant work a political dissident forced to do six months of hard labor in the salt mines as punishment

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in childbirth

the act or process of giving birth to children the mother's labor lasted for six hours

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as in production

something produced by physical or intellectual effort a small, personal film that was clearly a labor of love for the director and actors

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labor

2 of 2

verb

as in to struggle

to devote serious and sustained effort the young lawyer labored most of the weekend over the difficult legal brief

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun labor contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of labor are drudgery, grind, toil, travail, and work. While all these words mean "activity involving effort or exertion," labor applies to physical or intellectual work involving great and often strenuous exertion.

farmers demanding fair compensation for their labor

Where would drudgery be a reasonable alternative to labor?

The words drudgery and labor can be used in similar contexts, but drudgery suggests dull and irksome labor.

an editorial job with a good deal of drudgery

When is it sensible to use grind instead of labor?

The words grind and labor are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, grind implies labor exhausting to mind or body.

the grind of the assembly line

When might toil be a better fit than labor?

The synonyms toil and labor are sometimes interchangeable, but toil implies prolonged and fatiguing labor.

his lot would be years of back-breaking toil

When could travail be used to replace labor?

While in some cases nearly identical to labor, travail is bookish for labor involving pain or suffering.

years of travail were lost when the house burned

When would work be a good substitute for labor?

Although the words work and labor have much in common, work may imply activity of body, of mind, of a machine, or of a natural force.

too tired to do any work

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of labor

Noun

The Barbie premiere took place on July 9 in Los Angeles, and less than a week later, SAG joined the WGA in its labor strikes, which slow-rolled directly into our current moment of M&A and consolidation. — Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 12 Oct. 2026 Oh suggested the addition of the second, documentarian couple, Ye-ji and Sang-woo, whose presence both complicates the labor plot and makes its stakes more visible. — E. Tammy Kim, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026

Verb

And workers have now spent over 1 million hours laboring on an infrastructure project whose price tag has surpassed $900 million. — Robert Tann, Denver Post, 24 Sep. 2026 McNeely’s portrait of a laboring mother, swathed in glowing fields of chartreuse, outshines (again, literally) art history’s greats. — Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 18 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for labor

Recent Examples of Synonyms for labor

Noun

Following the ruling, Benson drowns her sorrows over cocktails with Sharpe, and, in a revealing, impeccably acted scene, airs out her grievances about her job.

— Marlow Stern, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026
Hey, the boss needs a favor In a November 2025 Reddit post, one person described buying $800 in Target gift cards on their second day at a new job after receiving an email impersonating their boss.

— Tatiana Sataua, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of job

Noun

The discovery is a huge victory for conservation efforts across the Indian Ocean.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 10 Oct. 2026
In yet another battle between the states and social media platforms, Florida asked a state judge to order changes on Instagram and Facebook in an effort to protect young users.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of effort

Noun

Contraception is critical to helping adolescent girls avoid unintended pregnancies and the risks of childbirth, particularly given Africa’s high maternal mortality rates, experts say.

— ABC News, ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026
The 44-year-old also thanked her medical team, while mentioning a challenging childbirth experience.

— Anna Halkidis, Parents, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of childbirth

Noun

The Type 01 is the first production car since the brand’s reinvention, and the most powerful, most aerodynamic, and most technologically advanced car Jaguar has ever built.

— Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 7 Oct. 2026
Paul Heaney’s company itself acts as the central commissioner, putting projects into production and then sells the rights to buyers who have already stated their interest.

— Max Goldbart, Deadline, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of production

Verb

Specifically, Nico Iamaleava struggled, fumbling once and throwing interceptions to Oregon’s Koi Perich and Jerry Mixon.

— Elias Esquivel, Los Angeles Times, 11 Oct. 2026
Moon, meanwhile, is struggling at school but on the precipice of adulthood; as the young woman begins to make her own decisions in life, Yue must relinquish a degree of maternal responsibility.

— Guy Lodge, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of struggle

Noun

Various parts of the plant have been used in traditional medicine systems such as Ayurveda to treat conditions including headaches, colic, dropsy, rheumatism, nervous agitation, constipation, dyspepsia, and infections of the eye and throat.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Oct. 2026
The Bruins’ biggest headache could be 6-foot-5 tight end Jamari Johnson, who caught seven passes for 159 yards against USC, particularly with all three of UCLA’s starting cornerbacks shorter than 6 feet.

— Connor Dullinger, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of headache

Noun

Her most recent work, Elegies (2023), a documentary about Hong Kong poetry, opened Hong Kong International Film Festival and was nominated for the Golden Horse Awards.

— Liz Shackleton, Deadline, 11 Oct. 2026
While her work regularly brings her into close proximity with children, Uta has little interest in starting a family of her own.

— Guy Lodge, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of work

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labile

labor

labor camp

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“Labor.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/labor. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of labor

noun

verb

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