hackwork

[ hak-wurk ]

noun

1. writing, painting, or any professional work done for hire and usually following a formula rather than being motivated by any creative impulse.

hackwork

/ ˈhækˌwɜːk /

noun

1. undistinguished literary work produced to order

Word History and Origins

Origin of hackwork¹

First recorded in 1850–55; hack ² + work

Example Sentences

He gets orders from Anthony Hopkins — last weekend an Academy Award-winning actor, this weekend a monologue dispenser in a turgid piece of hackwork — that he proceeds to screw up time and again.

From New York Times

But “A Play Is a Poem” is a pretentious title for such hackwork.

From Los Angeles Times

An initially clever exercise winds up feeling like the wrong kind of hackwork.

From Los Angeles Times

In this moment, when a guy who already seems like a cartoon character is president, how do how do you separate the hackwork, the easy, obvious stuff, from more nuanced and sophisticated work?

From Salon

The play being performed will come to be known as "Romeo and Juliet" once Will, infused with love and longing, chucks the idea of "Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate's Daughter," choosing art over contrived hackwork.

From Los Angeles Times