work in WordNet English dictionary

1. have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or expected
   "The voting process doesn't work as well as people thought"; "How does your idea work in practice?"; "This method doesn't work"; "The breaks of my new car act quickly"; "The medicine works only if you take it with a lot of water"
   work  act 
   
2. have and exert influence or effect
   "The artist's work influenced the young painter"; "She worked on her friends to support the political candidate"
   influence  act upon  work 
   
3. cause to happen or to occur as a consequence
   "I cannot work a miracle"; "wreak havoc"; "bring comments"; "play a joke"; "The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area"
   bring  work  play  wreak  make for 
   
4. prepare for crops
   "Work the soil"; "cultivate the land"
   cultivate  crop  work 
   
5. be employed
   "Is your husband working again?"; "My wife never worked"; "Do you want to work after the age of 60?"; "She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money"; "She works as a waitress to put herself through college"
   work  do work 
   
6. give a workout to
   "Some parents exercise their infants"; "My personal trainer works me hard"; "work one's muscles"; "this puzzle will exercise your mind"
   exercise  work  work out 
   
7. use or manipulate to one's advantage
   "He exploit the new taxation system"; "She knows how to work the system"; "he works his parents for sympathy"
   exploit  work 
   
8. go sour or spoil
   "The milk has soured"; "The wine worked"; "The cream has turned--we have to throw it out"
   sour  turn  ferment  work 
   
9. cause to undergo fermentation
   "We ferment the grapes for a very long time to achieve high alcohol content"; "The vintner worked the wine in big oak vats"
   ferment  work 
   
10. find the solution to (a problem or question) or understand the meaning of
    "did you solve the problem?"; "Work out your problems with the boss"; "this unpleasant situation isn't going to work itself out"; "did you get it?"; "Did you get my meaning?"; "He could not work the math problem"
    solve  work out  figure out  puzzle out  lick  work 
    
11. make something, usually for a specific function
    "She molded the rice balls carefully"; "Form cylinders from the dough"; "shape a figure"; "Work the metal into a sword"
    shape  form  work  mold  mould  forge 
    
12. perform as expected when applied
    "The washing machine won't go unless it's plugged in"; "Does this old car still run well?"; "This old radio doesn't work anymore"
    function  work  operate  go  run 
    
13. make uniform
    "knead dough"; "work the clay until it is soft"
    knead  work 
    
14. proceed along a path
    "work one's way through the crowd"; "make one's way into the forest"
    make  work 
    
15. shape, form, or improve a material
    "work stone into tools"; "process iron"; "work the metal"
    work  work on  process 
    
16. cause to work
    "he is working his servants hard"
    work  put to work 
    
17. arrive at a certain condition through repeated motion
    "The stitches of the hem worked loose after she wore the skirt many times"
    work 
    
18. move into or onto
    "work the raisins into the dough"; "the student worked a few jokes into his presentation"; "work the body onto the flatbed truck"
    work 
    
19. gratify and charm, usually in order to influence
    "the political candidate worked the crowds"
    work 
    
20. move in an agitated manner
    "His fingers worked with tension"
    work 
    
21. provoke or excite
    "The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy"
    work 
    
22. exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity
    "I will work hard to improve my grades"; "she worked hard for better living conditions for the poor"
    work 
    
23. operate in a certain place, area, or specialty
    "She works the night clubs"; "The salesman works the Midwest"; "This artist works mostly in acrylics"
    work 
    
24. proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity
    "work your way through every problem or task"; "She was working on her second martini when the guests arrived"; "Start from the bottom and work towards the top"
    work 
    
25. operate in or through
    "Work the phones"
    work 
    
26. cause to operate or function
    "This pilot works the controls"; "Can you work an electric drill?"
    work 
    
27. behave in a certain way when handled
    "This dough does not work easily"; "The soft metal works well"
    work 
    

1. the total output of a writer or artist (or a substantial part of it)
   "he studied the entire Wagnerian oeuvre"; "Picasso's work can be divided into periods"
   oeuvre  work  body of work 
   
2. the occupation for which you are paid
   "he is looking for employment"; "a lot of people are out of work"
   employment  work 
   
3. a product produced or accomplished through the effort or activity or agency of a person or thing
   "it is not regarded as one of his more memorable works"; "the symphony was hailed as an ingenious work"; "he was indebted to the pioneering work of John Dewey"; "the work of an active imagination"; "erosion is the work of wind or water over time"
   work  piece of work 
   
4. applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject (especially by reading)
   "mastering a second language requires a lot of work"; "no schools offer graduate study in interior design"
   study  work 
   
5. activity directed toward making or doing something
   "she checked several points needing further work"
   work 
   
6. a place where work is done
   "he arrived at work early today"
   workplace  work 
   
7. (physics) a manifestation of energy; the transfer of energy from one physical system to another expressed as the product of a force and the distance through which it moves a body in the direction of that force
   "work equals force times distance"
   work