labour

labour — noun

1. physical activity that people do as their job, especially work that requires a l

1.nounB1
Definition

physical activity that people do as their job, especially work that requires a lot of strength and is done with the hands or body

Example

The renovation required three days of heavy labour to tear down the old walls.

heavy labour — collocation for strenuous physical work

After years of manual labour, Amira's hands had become rough and very strong.

manual labour — common collocation

Common collocations
  • manual labour
  • physical labour
  • hard labour
  • forced labour
  • heavy labour
  • cheap labour
Synonyms
  • work

    the most general term for any productive or paid activity; 'labour' is more specific to physical effort

  • toil

    suggests prolonged, exhausting work; more formal and literary in tone

  • drudgery

    emphasises the tedious, unpleasant nature of the work

Antonyms
  • leisure

    free time when one is not working

  • rest

    a break from physical effort

Usage Note

Often used in compounds such as 'manual labour', 'hard labour', and 'physical labour'. The US spelling is 'labor'.

Common Mistakes

I have a labour in a bank.
I have a job in a bank.
'labour' as a noun usually refers to physical work as a general concept, not a specific job position.

2. the group of people who perform physical or practical work for a living, conside

2.nounB1
Definition

the group of people who perform physical or practical work for a living, considered together within a company, industry, or country

Example

The company's management met with union leaders to discuss the rights of organised labour.

organised labour = unionised workers

A shortage of skilled labour has slowed the region's recovery after the floods.

skilled labour / labour shortage

Common collocations
  • skilled labour
  • unskilled labour
  • cheap labour
  • organised labour
  • labour market
  • labour force
  • labour shortage
Synonyms
  • workforce

    more formal term; often used by economists and in business contexts

  • workers

    the most direct synonym; can refer to individuals or groups

  • employees

    specifically refers to people who work for a particular company

Antonyms
  • management

    the group of people who direct and control a company

  • employers

    people or organisations that hire workers

Usage Note

Used as a collective noun in singular form to refer to the whole group of workers. For individual workers, use 'labourer' or 'worker'.

Common Mistakes

The labours went on strike.
The labourers went on strike.
'labour' as a collective noun is uncountable; use 'labourers' for individual people.

3. the total amount of time, energy, and careful effort that someone puts into crea

3.nounB1
Definition

the total amount of time, energy, and careful effort that someone puts into creating something or completing a task over a period

Example

Readers can see the careful labour that went into every page of this illustrated novel.

Hiro put many months of labour into designing the community garden for the local school.

Common collocations
  • painstaking labour
  • careful labour
  • months of labour
  • years of labour
  • labour of love
Synonyms
  • effort

    more general term; can refer to physical or mental energy towards any goal

  • toil

    suggests prolonged and difficult effort; more literary

  • industry

    formal term for sustained hard work, often as a personal quality

4. the stage of pregnancy in which a baby is born, starting with regular contractio

4.nounB2
Definition

the stage of pregnancy in which a baby is born, starting with regular contractions of the womb and ending when the infant emerges from the mother

Example

Paloma was in labour for nearly twelve hours before her daughter was born.

in labour — fixed phrase for the childbirth stage

The midwife stayed with Kian's wife throughout her labour, offering encouragement and pain relief.

Common collocations
  • in labour
  • go into labour
  • be in labour
  • induce labour
  • labour pain
  • difficult labour
  • long labour
Synonyms
  • childbirth

    the broader term covering the whole process of giving birth

  • delivery

    the medical term for the moment the baby is born

  • contractions

    specifically refers to the muscle movements, not the full process

Usage Note

Usually used in the uncountable form and in the fixed phrase 'in labour'. Do not add 'of a baby' after 'in labour'.

Common Mistakes

She is in labour of a baby.
She is in labour.
'in labour' is a set phrase; do not add 'of a baby' or 'giving birth' after it.

5. the name of a major British political organisation, formed to represent the inte

5.nounB1
Definition

the name of a major British political organisation, formed to represent the interests of working people and now supporting social equality and stronger protections for employees

Example

Eitan has been a member of the Labour Party since he was a university student.

The Labour government introduced free healthcare for all citizens back in 1948.

capitalised: Labour = the British political party

Common collocations
  • Labour Party
  • Labour government
  • Labour leader
  • Labour MP
  • Labour policy
  • vote Labour

Usage Note

Always capitalised when referring to the British political party. Can be used as 'the Labour Party' or simply 'Labour'.

Common Mistakes

The labour party won the election.
The Labour Party won the election.
When referring to the political party, 'Labour' must be capitalised.
Idioms

a labour of love

idiom

a piece of work or an activity that someone does because they enjoy it or find it meaningful, not because they are paid for it or required to do it

Restoring the vintage motorcycle was a true labour of love for Élise, who spent every weekend on it.

The community cookbook was a genuine labour of love, compiled by volunteers from over forty families.

labour under a delusion / misapprehension

idiom

to continue believing something that is not true, especially about your own situation or abilities

Chiara had been labouring under the misapprehension that the job came with a company car.

For years, Brian laboured under the delusion that his landlord would fix everything without being asked.

labour — verb

labour — adjective

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

While 'work' is the most general term for any productive or paid activity, 'labour' specifically suggests physical exertion or manual effort — you can talk about office work but not usually office labour. 'Toil' implies prolonged, exhausting work that tests one's endurance; it is more literary and carries a sense of heroic struggle. 'Drudgery' has a purely negative tone, describing work that is dull, repetitive, and tiresome. For example, digging a trench is labour; writing a thesis involves toil; filing the same paperwork every day is drudgery. A key difference is that 'labour' can be neutral or even positive (a labour of love), whereas 'drudgery' is always a complaint, and 'toil' leans toward the poetic rather than everyday use.

labour ↗work ↗toildrudgery

Common collocations

Nouns

  • labour force
  • labour market
  • labour costs
  • labour law
  • labour union
  • labour relations
  • labour rights

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchEnglish

Labour entered English through Old French 'labour' (modern French 'labeur'), from Latin 'labor' meaning 'toil, exertion, hardship, or a piece of work'. The original Indo-European root may relate to 'to totter under a burden'. The spelling 'labour' (with -our) follows the French-influenced British convention, while the American 'labor' reflects Noah Webster's 19th-century spelling reforms that dropped silent endings. The political sense referring to the Labour Party began in the late 19th century as working-class political movements adopted the name. The childbirth sense dates from the 16th century, drawing on the metaphor of the mother's hard work — her 'labour' — in bringing a child into the world.