laborer

American  

[ley-ber-er] / ˈleɪ bər ər /

noun

1. a person engaged in work that requires bodily strength rather than skill or training.

   a laborer in the field.

2. any worker.

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Other Word Forms

• underlaborer noun

Etymology

Origin of laborer

Middle English word dating back to 1275–1325; see origin at labor, -er ¹

Explanation

A laborer is a worker, especially a person who does some kind of physical work. A stone mason is a laborer, but you probably wouldn't call a poet a laborer. In the old days, the word laborer implied an unskilled or menial worker, like a day laborer on a farm who might be hired at an hourly rate to haul rocks out of a field, or a street paver's assistant. Today, a laborer is thought of as someone who works with her hands, often outside. Laborer comes from labor, in Old French "work, exertion, or task," from the Latin laborem, "toil, exertion, or fatigue."

Example Sentences

This laborer wants to know what you mean by labor becoming tokenized.

From Barron's • Mar. 27, 2026

The day laborer said Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have previously detained other workers at the Panorama City Home Depot and have returned frequently.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 26, 2025

The glamour of Wall Street had replaced the dignity of the skilled laborer.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 6, 2025

Tincher was now a manual laborer on one leg, but he was denied disability benefits by the Social Security Administration the following year.

From Salon • Nov. 2, 2025

My dad worked as a laborer, and we didn’t have much, but I was never hungry in my life.

From "Bad Boy" by Walter Dean Myers

Related Words

• hand
• manual worker
• worker