We are indirectly dependent upon the labour of others for all the necessities and comforts of our lives.
Source: tatoeba (28865)
Labour
/ˈleɪ.bə/
Synonyms for "labour" (44 found)
Ranked by relevance and common usage.
Closest matches (9)
Strong matches (13)
Related words (22)
Noun(16 words)
lying-inoutputparturiencyparturitionproductionprogressive partyprojectproletariatsocial democratic partystriveswinktasktrade union movementtravailundertakingworking class
Choosing the right synonym
- Closest matches in this entry: toil, work, bear, birth process, british labour party.
- Sentence evidence is available for labour, so synonym choice can be checked against real usage rather than a flat word list.
- Ranking signals come from wiktionary, wordnet, opengloss, derived_reverse, and related lexical sources.
Synonym selection checklist
- Match the part of speech before comparing meanings.
- Check whether the synonym changes intensity, formality, or emotional tone.
- Read the replacement inside the full sentence, not just beside "labour".
- Prefer the clearest word over the most unusual word when writing for speed or comprehension.
When not to replace "labour"
Keep "labour" when the sentence already sounds natural, when a synonym would add unintended emphasis, or when readers need the most familiar wording. A synonym should clarify or sharpen the message, not simply make the sentence look more varied.
If two options seem close, choose the one that best matches the audience and purpose of the sentence.
Replacement workflow
1. Preserve meaning
Choose a synonym only if it keeps the core idea of "labour" intact in the sentence you are editing.
2. Tune tone
Check whether the replacement sounds more formal, casual, emotional, technical, or forceful than the original word.
3. Re-read context
Read the full sentence after the swap. Keep the synonym only when the sentence becomes clearer or more precise.
Review note: Synonym lists are ranked with lexical data and reviewed for practical writing value. Use the comparison notes, sentence evidence, and source labels together; a high-ranking synonym can still be wrong when the audience, register, or grammar changes.
Final fit check
After choosing a replacement for "labour", read the sentence once for meaning and once for rhythm. The best synonym should feel natural in the full sentence, not only accurate in a word list.
If the synonym makes the sentence slower, vaguer, or more dramatic than intended, keep "labour" or choose a simpler alternative from the closest-match group.
Related word relations
OpenGloss and ConceptNet supply richer edges like generalizations, collocations, and derivations.
More general
23 entriesactivitybirthbirth processbirthingclassdo workeconomic activityfightgiving birthlabor partylabour partyparturitionphysiological processpolitical partyproductionreform movement
Showing 16 of 23 words.
More specific
12 entriesCollocations
11 entriesheavy labourlabour forcelabour lawlabour marketlabour onlabour overlabour partylabour throughlabour undermanual labourphysical labour
Inflections
3 entriesDerivations
4 entriessimilar
2 entriesbear onpush
Translations
131 translations across 81 languages.
Afrikaans
1 entries- arbeid noun (work)
Albanian
1 entries- punë noun (work)
Ancient Greek
1 entries- ἔργον noun (work)
Arabic
2 entries- شُغْل noun (work)
- عَمَل noun (work)
Armenian
1 entries- աշխատանք noun (work)
Azerbaijani
4 entries- iş noun (work)
- zəhmət noun (work)
- əmək noun (work)
- əziyyət noun (work)
Bashkir
1 entries- эш noun (work)
Belarusian
1 entries- пра́ца noun (work)
Bengali
3 entries- কাজ noun (work)
- মেহনত noun (work)
- শ্রম noun (work)
Bulgarian
1 entries- труд noun (work)
Burmese
2 entries- လုပ်အား noun (work)
- အလုပ် noun (work)
Chinese
1 entries- 勞動 /劳动 noun (work)
Chinese Cantonese
1 entries- 勞動 /劳动 noun (work)
Chinese Mandarin
1 entries- 勞動 /劳动 noun (work)
Church Slavic
4 entries- работа noun (work)
- троудъ noun (work)
- ⱃⰰⰱⱁⱅⰰ noun (work)
- ⱅⱃⱆⰴⱏ noun (work)
Czech
2 entries- námaha noun (work)
- práce noun (work)
Danish
1 entries- arbejde noun (work)
Dutch
1 entries- arbeid noun (work)
Finnish
1 entries- aherrus noun (work)
French
2 entries- effort noun (work)
- travail noun (work)
Friulian
1 entries- lavôr noun (work)
Georgian
1 entries- შრომა noun (work)
German
1 entries- Arbeit noun (work)
Gothic
1 entries- 𐌰𐍂𐌱𐌰𐌹𐌸𐍃 noun (work)
Greek
2 entries- δουλειά noun (work)
- εργασία noun (work)
Hebrew
2 entries- עֲבוֹדָה noun (work)
- עָמָל noun (work)
Hindi
2 entries- काम noun (work)
- श्रम noun (work)
Hungarian
1 entries- munka noun (work)
Icelandic
1 entries- vinna noun (work)
Ido
1 entries- laboro noun (work)
Indonesian
2 entries- kerja noun (work)
- tenaga kerja noun (work)
Iranian Persian
3 entries- شُغْل noun (work)
- مِحْنَت noun (work)
- کار noun (work)
Irish
2 entries- obair noun (work)
- saothar noun (work)
Istriot
1 entries- lavur noun (work)
Italian
1 entries- lavoro noun (work)
Japanese
1 entries- 労働 noun (work)
Kazakh
4 entries- еңбек noun (work)
- жұмыс noun (work)
- іс noun (work)
- қызмет noun (work)
Khmer
1 entries- ការងារ noun (work)
Korean
2 entries- 노동 noun (work)
- 로동 noun (work)
Kyrgyz
4 entries- жумуш noun (work)
- иш noun (work)
- кызмат noun (work)
- эмгек noun (work)
Ladin
1 entries- lëur noun (work)
Lao
4 entries- ການທຳ noun (work)
- ງານ noun (work)
- ນັກງານ noun (work)
- ແຮງງານ noun (work)
Macedonian
1 entries- труд noun (work)
Malay
1 entries- kerja noun (work)
Malayalam
1 entries- അധ്വാനം noun (work)
Mongolian
2 entries- ажил noun (work)
- хөдөлмөр noun (work)
Māori
1 entries- mahi noun (work)
Nahuatl
1 entries- tequiua noun (work)
Norwegian Bokmål
1 entries- arbeid noun (work)
Old East Slavic
2 entries- робота noun (work)
- трудъ noun (work)
Old English
2 entries- earfoþe noun (work)
- weorc noun (work)
Old Saxon
1 entries- arƀed noun (work)
Pannonian Rusyn
1 entries- трудба noun (work)
Plautdietsch
2 entries- Oabeit noun (work)
- Woakj noun (work)
Polish
1 entries- praca noun (work)
Portuguese
2 entries- labuta noun (work)
- trabalho noun (work)
Romanian
1 entries- muncă noun (work)
Romansch
1 entries- lavur noun (work)
Russian
2 entries- рабо́та noun (work)
- труд noun (work)
Scottish Gaelic
2 entries- obair noun (work)
- saothair noun (work)
Serbo-Croatian
2 entries- rȃd noun (work)
- ра̑д noun (work)
Sicilian
2 entries- lavuri noun (work)
- travagghiu noun (work)
Slovak
1 entries- práca noun (work)
Slovene
1 entries- delo noun (work)
Spanish
1 entries- trabajo noun (work)
Swedish
1 entries- arbete noun (work)
Tajik
3 entries- кор noun (work)
- меҳнат noun (work)
- шуғл noun (work)
Tatar
2 entries- хезмәт noun (work)
- эш noun (work)
Telugu
1 entries- శ్రమ noun (work)
Thai
3 entries- การงาน noun (work)
- งาน noun (work)
- แรงงาน noun (work)
Tocharian B
1 entries- lāṃs noun (work)
Turkish
2 entries- emek noun (work)
- iş noun (work)
Turkmen
2 entries- iş noun (work)
- zähmet noun (work)
Ukrainian
2 entries- пра́ця noun (work)
- труд noun (work)
Urdu
3 entries- شُغْل noun (work)
- مِحْنَت noun (work)
- کام noun (work)
Uyghur
1 entries- ئەمگەك noun (work)
Uzbek
2 entries- ish noun (work)
- mehnat noun (work)
Venetan
1 entries- laóro noun (work)
Vietnamese
1 entries- lao động noun (work)
Welsh
2 entries- gwaith noun (work)
- llafur noun (work)
Yiddish
1 entries- אַרבעט noun (work)
Sample sentences
24 total sentences available.
Hanson is wrong when he states international economic developments led to great migrations of labour in the seventeenth century.
Source: tatoeba (73311)
"I'd rather get the sack than not join the labour union," said the disgruntled worker.
Source: tatoeba (73512)
The argument continues about the "white-collar exemption" that exempts specific white-collar workers from the "eight hours per day, 40 hours per week" working hours, as fixed by labour standards legislation.
Source: tatoeba (326663)
Showing 4 of 24 available sentences.
Common questions
What are the closest synonyms for "labour"?
Closest matches include toil, work, bear, birth process, british labour party.
How should I check whether a synonym fits "labour"?
Compare the replacement against real sentence context. This entry includes sample sentences so you can check tone, grammar, and meaning before swapping words.