manual labor

noun

UK /ˈmæn.ju.əl ˈleɪ.bər/

US /ˈmæn.ju.əl ˈleɪ.bɚ/

Manual labor is work you do with your hands and body, like digging or carrying things.

The workers did manual labor all day, lifting heavy boxes and digging holes.

SYNONYMS

physical work hard work handwork heavy work muscle work

RELATED WORDS

laborer sweat effort construction farm work

OTHER MEANINGS

2. Work that does not need special training or a degree.

Many jobs in manual labor pay by the hour.

3. Hard physical effort done as part of a job.

He was tired after a long day of manual labor on the farm.

4. Work done by people rather than by machines.

Before machines, most farming was manual labor.