Job

//dʒɒb// name, noun, verb, slang

Definitions

Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A book of the Old Testament and the Hebrew Tanakh.
  2. 2
    A male given name from Hebrew.
  3. 3
    A character in the Old Testament and the Qur'an, renowned for his patience.
Noun
  1. 1
    A task. countable, uncountable

    "I've got a job for you: could you wash the dishes?"

  2. 2
    A sudden thrust or stab; a jab or punch. obsolete

    "Fair dinkum, a man ought to give you a job in the b— face."

  3. 3
    A person who shows remarkable patience, especially in the face of great misfortune. figuratively
  4. 4
    a damaging piece of work wordnet
  5. 5
    An economic role for which a person is paid. countable, uncountable

    "That surgeon has a great job."

Show 19 more definitions
  1. 6
    the performance of a piece of work wordnet
  2. 7
    Plastic surgery. countable, uncountable

    "He had a nose job."

  3. 8
    the principal activity in your life that you do to earn money wordnet
  4. 9
    A sex act. countable, uncountable

    "hand job"

  5. 10
    the responsibility to do something wordnet
  6. 11
    A task, or series of tasks, carried out in batch mode (especially on a mainframe computer). countable, uncountable
  7. 12
    a specific piece of work required to be done as a duty or for a specific fee wordnet
  8. 13
    A public transaction done for private profit; something performed ostensibly as a part of official duty, but really for private gain; a corrupt official business. countable, uncountable
  9. 14
    a crime (especially a robbery) wordnet
  10. 15
    A robbery or heist. countable, informal, uncountable

    "a bank job"

  11. 16
    a workplace; as in the expression ‘on the job’ wordnet
  12. 17
    Any affair or event which affects one, whether fortunately or unfortunately. countable, uncountable
  13. 18
    an object worked on; a result produced by working wordnet
  14. 19
    A thing or whatsit (often used in a vague way to refer to something whose name one cannot recall). colloquial, countable, uncountable

    "Pass me that little job with the screw thread on it."

  15. 20
    (computer science) a program application that may consist of several steps but is a single logical unit wordnet
  16. 21
    The police as a profession, act of policing, or an individual police officer. UK, slang, uncountable

    "“He was ex-job, Beavis. Detective sergeant out of County, Banbury, retired in ‘59.”"

  17. 22
    any long-suffering person who withstands affliction without despairing wordnet
  18. 23
    A penis. countable, slang, uncountable, vulgar
  19. 24
    a state of difficulty that needs to be resolved wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    To do odd jobs or occasional work for hire. intransitive

    "Authors of all work, to job for the season."

  2. 2
    To peck (of a bird); (more generally) to poke or prod (at, into). archaic, intransitive, regional

    "a raven pitch'd upon him, and there sate, jobbing of the sore"

  3. 3
    invest at a risk wordnet
  4. 4
    To work as a jobber. intransitive
  5. 5
    To pierce or poke (someone or something), typically with a sharp or pointed object; to stab. transitive

    "He had ‘jobbed out’ the eye of one gentleman."

Show 9 more definitions
  1. 6
    work occasionally wordnet
  2. 7
    To take the loss, usually in a demeaning or submissive manner. intransitive, slang
  3. 8
    To hit (someone) with a quick, sharp punch; to jab. Australia, transitive

    "A stranger jobbed me in the mug so hard that I fell off my chair."

  4. 9
    arranged for contracted work to be done by others wordnet
  5. 10
    To buy and sell for profit, as securities; to speculate in. transitive
  6. 11
    profit privately from public office and official business wordnet
  7. 12
    To subcontract a project or delivery in small portions to a number of contractors. often, transitive

    "We wanted to sell a turnkey plant, but they jobbed out the contract to small firms."

  8. 13
    To seek private gain under pretence of public service; to turn public matters to private advantage. intransitive

    "And judges job, and bishops bite the town."

  9. 14
    To hire or let in periods of service.

    "to job a carriage"

Etymology

Etymology 1

From the phrase jobbe of work (“piece of work”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from a variant of Middle English gobbe (“mass, lump”); or perhaps related to Middle English jobben (“to jab, thrust, peck”), or Middle English choppe (“piece, bargain”). More at gob, jab, chop.

Etymology 2

From the phrase jobbe of work (“piece of work”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from a variant of Middle English gobbe (“mass, lump”); or perhaps related to Middle English jobben (“to jab, thrust, peck”), or Middle English choppe (“piece, bargain”). More at gob, jab, chop.

Etymology 3

Imitative.

Etymology 4

Imitative.

Etymology 5

From Latin Iob, from Ancient Greek Ἰώβ (Iṓb), from Biblical Hebrew אִיּוֹב (ʾiyyōḇ), related to אָיַב (ʾāyaḇ, “to be an enemy”) and אוֹיֵב (ʾōyēḇ, “enemy”).

Etymology 6

From Latin Iob, from Ancient Greek Ἰώβ (Iṓb), from Biblical Hebrew אִיּוֹב (ʾiyyōḇ), related to אָיַב (ʾāyaḇ, “to be an enemy”) and אוֹיֵב (ʾōyēḇ, “enemy”).

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