work on

verb

1. intr, preposition to persuade or influence or attempt to persuade or influence

Idioms and Phrases

Also, work upon . Exercise influence on, as in If you work on him, he might change his mind , or She always worked upon their feelings by pretending to be more ill than she really was . [Early 1600s]

Example Sentences

She said some crew members told her not to film them on the closed set, in case, she said, it was discovered they had worked on Rust "and I might never get a job again".

From BBC

No one who works with migrants, no one who works on border security, would ever say the sort of words or phrases routinely in political slogans: “stop the boats” or “smash the gangs”.

From BBC

It has also offered conductors a new deal to work on Sundays, he said, adding that the leadership of the RMT union will look at the offer before putting it to members for a vote.

From BBC

The results add to a small but growing body of work on this subject.

From Science Daily

Just two months before that, almost exactly two years ago, the “Jay Leno’s Garage” star was treated for second- and third-degree burns he sustained while working on an old car in his Burbank garage.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• agitate
• bore
• bother
• displease
• disturb
• exasperate
• fire up
• gall
• irk
• peeve
• perturb
• rile
• trouble
• turn off
• vex
• worry