| Library / English Dictionary |
WORKING
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
A mine or quarry that is being or has been worked
Synonyms:
working; workings
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Hypernyms ("working" is a kind of...):
excavation (a hole in the ground made by excavating)
II. (adjective)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Serving to permit or facilitate further work or activity
Example:
they need working agreements with their neighbor states on interstate projects
Classified under:
Similar:
operative (being in force or having or exerting force)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Actively engaged in paid work
Example:
robots can be on the job day and night
Synonyms:
on the job; working
Classified under:
Similar:
employed (having your services engaged for; or having a job especially one that pays wages or a salary)
Sense 3
Meaning:
(of e.g. a machine) performing or capable of performing
Example:
a functional set of brakes
Synonyms:
functional; operative; running; working
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
functioning (performing or able to perform its regular function)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Adopted as a temporary basis for further work
Example:
a working hypothesis
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
impermanent; temporary (not permanent; not lasting)
Sense 5
Meaning:
Adequate for practical use; especially sufficient in strength or numbers to accomplish something
Example:
a working knowledge of Spanish
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
practical (concerned with actual use or practice)
III. (verb)
Sense 1
-ing form of the verb work
Context examples:
My answer is, that there was not one of us who was not working for this end, but that our work had been in vain.
(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Very good; we shall wire to him, and see if all is well, and if a clerk of your name is working there.
(The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
At least we may accept it as a working hypothesis.
(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
I ought to be satisfied to please Grandfather, and I do try, but it's working against the grain, you see, and comes hard.
(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)
Besides, there are one or two details which are not finished off, and it is one of those cases which are worth working out to the very end.
(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Measuring the amount of CA 15-3 in the blood may be useful in checking how well cancer treatment is working or if cancer has come back.
(CA 15-3, NCI Dictionary)
All this I saw, and my brain now working rapidly, I thought a thousand thoughts; and yet I could not pull the triggers.
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
A branch of cell biology concerned with the working of the nucleus at the microscopic and molecular level.
(Nuclei, Structure/Function, NCI Thesaurus)
They can also show how organs like your heart and lungs are working.
(Nuclear Scans, NIH)
You usually need to stay in the hospital for a day or two, so your doctor can make sure that the device is working well.
(Pacemakers and Implantable Defibrillators, NIH)
