worker

worker — noun

1. a person with a paid role in a specific field or function — such as a health wor

1.nounA2
Definition

a person with a paid role in a specific field or function — such as a health worker, a research worker, or an office worker handling daily paperwork.

Example

The research worker spent three years collecting data from patients.

worker + in [field] — research worker is a common compound

Vivek started as a kitchen worker and later became the head chef.

worker + at [place] — kitchen worker

Common collocations
  • skilled worker
  • office worker
  • factory worker
  • health worker
  • social worker
  • research worker
Synonyms
  • employee

    focuses on being hired by an employer, not on the type of task

  • staff member

    more formal and suggests being part of a team or organization

  • laborer

    emphasizes physical work; narrower than worker

  • operative

    more technical; used in manufacturing or skilled trades

Antonyms
  • employer

    the person or company that pays the worker

  • manager

    a person who organizes and oversees workers

Grammar Patterns

worker + in [field/industry]

worker + at [place]

Common Mistakes

I am a worker in Apple.
I work at Apple.
'worker' is too vague for naming a specific employer; say what kind of worker or use 'work at/for'.
He is a worker of the hospital.
He is a hospital worker.
use the noun+noun compound form rather than 'worker of...'.

2. a person hired by a business or factory to carry out physical or repetitive task

2.nounA2
Definition

a person hired by a business or factory to carry out physical or repetitive tasks, not to supervise others — for instance, a factory worker running a machine or a construction worker hauling materials.

Example

The factory workers voted to go on strike for better pay.

factory workers — common compound in labor contexts

Amani got a job as a warehouse worker stacking boxes on shelves.

Common collocations
  • factory workers
  • construction workers
  • warehouse workers
  • farm workers
  • shift workers
  • skilled workers
  • unskilled workers
Synonyms
  • employee

    broader term; an executive is also an employee

  • staff

    collective noun for all non-management personnel in a workplace

  • labourer

    specifically someone doing heavy physical work

  • operative

    someone who operates machinery or equipment

Antonyms
  • boss

    informal; the person in charge of workers

  • management

    the group that makes decisions about workers

Grammar Patterns

workers + verb (plural)

the workers — referring to a group

Usage Note

This sense is frequently used in the plural (the workers) to refer to the entire non-management workforce of a company or industry. In news and union contexts, 'workers' contrasts with 'management' or 'employers'.

Common Mistakes

The worker is very unhappy with the new policy.' (one person — odd without context)
The workers are very unhappy with the new policy.
use plural when referring to the group as a whole.

3. the social class whose members have very little property or wealth and earn mone

3.nounB1
Definition

the social class whose members have very little property or wealth and earn money through manual or low-wage labour — commonly used in political or economic discussion, almost always in the plural form 'workers'.

Example

The party said it would fight for the rights of workers across the country.

the rights of workers — political/social framing

Heloísa's family of workers has lived in the same town for five generations.

Common collocations
  • workers' rights
  • workers' movement
  • workers' party
  • fellow workers
  • working class
Synonyms
  • working class

    the full sociological term for this social group

  • proletariat

    academic or Marxist term; much more formal than 'workers'

  • labour force

    economic term for all people available for work

  • wage earners

    emphasizes that these people are paid wages (not salaries)

Antonyms
  • capitalists

    people who own businesses and capital, contrasted in class analysis

  • upper class

    the highest social class, with inherited wealth and power

Grammar Patterns

the workers — social/political class

workers' + rights/interests/movement

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 2: sense 2 refers to a person's role within a specific company, while sense 3 refers to a broad social, economic, or political class. Sense 3 is almost always used in the plural and often appears with words like 'rights', 'class', 'movement', 'struggle'.

Common Mistakes

The workers needs better housing.
The workers need better housing.
'workers' is a regular plural noun and takes a plural verb.

4. a female bee, ant, wasp, or similar insect that does most of the colony's tasks

4.nounB1
Definition

a female bee, ant, wasp, or similar insect that does most of the colony's tasks — such as gathering food, building the nest, and caring for the young — but does not reproduce.

Example

The worker bees carry pollen from flower to flower all day.

worker bee — most common compound

In an ant colony, the workers build tunnels and defend the entrance.

Common collocations
  • worker bee
  • worker ant
  • worker wasp
  • worker termite
Synonyms
  • forager

    a worker insect that collects food; a sub-role within the colony

  • drone

    a male bee whose only role is to mate with the queen — NOT a worker

Antonyms
  • queen

    the reproductive female insect that the workers serve and protect

  • drone

    the male insect, which does no work in the colony

Grammar Patterns

worker + bee/ant/wasp/termite

Usage Note

This sense is restricted to biology contexts about social insects. The word is almost always paired with the insect name: 'worker bee', 'worker ant', 'worker wasp', etc. 'Worker' alone is uncommon; readers expect the insect name to follow.

Common Mistakes

The worker brought food to the queen.' (unclear — is this a person or an insect?)
The worker ant brought food to the queen ant.
always specify the insect species to avoid confusion.
Idioms

a fast worker

idiom

A person who is very good at achieving their goals quickly, especially in starting a romantic or sexual relationship.

Maya is a fast worker; she got a date within minutes.

Diego is a fast worker, but his charm feels a bit too practiced.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words describe people who are paid to do a job, but they differ in emphasis and scope. 'Worker' is the broadest term — it can describe anyone from a research scientist to a farm hand, and it focuses on the act of working rather than the employment relationship. 'Employee' is a legal and administrative term: it means someone who is formally hired and paid by an employer. A CEO is an employee too, but you would not call a CEO a 'worker' in sense 2. 'Laborer' narrows the meaning to physical work only — a laborer digs holes, carries bricks, or harvests crops. 'Staff member' suggests belonging to a particular team or organization; it is more formal than 'worker' and implies a shared workplace. 'Operative' is the most technical of the group, used in manufacturing or skilled trades ('machine operative'), and can also mean a spy or agent in intelligence contexts. For a general description of someone doing a job, 'worker' is the simplest and safest choice. Example: 'My aunt is a health worker in a clinic' feels natural, while 'My aunt is a health operative' sounds odd and overly technical.

employee ↗laborerstaff memberoperative ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • worker rights
  • worker safety
  • worker productivity
  • worker compensation

Adverbs

Phrases

  • fellow workers
  • skilled worker
  • unskilled worker
  • seasonal worker
  • temporary worker
  • full-time worker
  • part-time worker

Prepositions

  • as a worker
  • worker + in [industry/field]
  • worker + at [place]
  • worker + with [company]

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'worker' comes from Old English 'wyrcere', meaning 'one who does work'. It is formed from 'wyrcan' (to work) plus '-ere' (a suffix meaning 'a person who does something'). The modern spelling 'worker' appeared in Middle English around the 1300s. The biological sense — referring to bees and ants — was first recorded in the 1700s, as naturalists observed how insect colonies divide labour.