ˈleɪbə n. & v. (US,
Austral. labor) --n. 1 a
physical or
mental work; exertion;
toil. b
such work considered as supplying
the needs of a
community. 2 a workers,
esp.
manual, considered as a
class or
political force (a
dispute between capital
and labour). b (Labour) the Labour Party. 3 the process of
childbirth, esp. the
period from the
start of
uterine contractions to
delivery (has
been in labour
for three hours). 4 a
particular task, esp. of a
difficult nature. --v. 1 intr. work
hard;
exert oneself. 2 intr. (usu. foll. by for, or to + infin.)
strive for a
purpose (laboured to
fulfil his promise). 3 tr. a
treat at
excessive length;
elaborate needlessly (I will
not labour the point). b (as laboured adj.)
done with great effort; not
spontaneous or
fluent. 4 intr. (often foll. by under)
suffer under (a
disadvantage or delusion) (laboured under
universal disapproval). 5 intr.
proceed with
trouble or
difficulty (laboured slowly up the hill). 6 intr. (of a ship)
roll or pitch heavily. 7 tr.
archaic or
poet. till (the ground). ølabour camp a
prison camp enforcing a
regime of hard labour. Labour
Day May 1 (or in the US and Canada the
first Monday in September), celebrated in
honour of
working people. Labour
Exchange Brit. colloq. or
hist. an
employment exchange; a
jobcentre. labour force the
body of workers employed, esp. at a
single plant. labouring
man a
labourer. labour-intensive (of a
form of work) needing a
large work force. labour in
vain make a
fruitless effort. labour-market the supply of labour with
reference to the
demand on
it. labour of
Hercules a task needing
enormous strength or effort. labour of
love a task done for
pleasure, not
reward. Labour Party 1 a
British political party formed to
represent the interests of
ordinary working people. 2
any similar political party in
other countries. labour-saving (of an
appliance etc.) designed to
reduce or
eliminate work. labour
union US a
trade union.
lost labour fruitless effort. [ME f. OF labo(u)r, labourer f. L labor, -oris, laborare]
