worker
/ˈwɜːkə(r)/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈwɜːrkər/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈwər-kər/ (ame, mw)
worker — 名詞
- workersingular
- workersplural
1. a person with a paid role in a specific field or function — such as a health wor
工作者；人員
從事特定工作或職位的人
a person with a paid role in a specific field or function — such as a health worker, a research worker, or an office worker handling daily paperwork.
The research worker spent three years collecting data from patients.
這位研究工作者花了三年時間收集病人的資料。
worker + in [field] — research worker is a common compound
Vivek started as a kitchen worker and later became the head chef.
Vivek 起初是廚房的工作人員，後來成了主廚。
worker + at [place] — kitchen worker
Social workers visit families to check that children are safe at home.
社工人員會拜訪家庭，確認孩子在家裡安全無虞。
A skilled worker can complete the task in half the usual time.
技術熟練的工作者能用一半的時間完成任務。
The office workers left the building when the fire alarm went off.
辦公室職員在火災警報響起時離開了建築物。
- employee
focuses on being hired by an employer, not on the type of task
- staff member
more formal and suggests being part of a team or organization
- laborer
emphasizes physical work; narrower than worker
- operative
more technical; used in manufacturing or skilled trades
文法句型
worker + in [field/industry]
worker + at [place]
常見錯誤
2. a person hired by a business or factory to carry out physical or repetitive task
勞工；工人
受僱於公司、從事勞力或基層工作的人
a person hired by a business or factory to carry out physical or repetitive tasks, not to supervise others — for instance, a factory worker running a machine or a construction worker hauling materials.
The factory workers voted to go on strike for better pay.
工廠工人投票決定罷工，要求提高薪資。
factory workers — common compound in labor contexts
Amani got a job as a warehouse worker stacking boxes on shelves.
Amani 找到一份倉庫工人的工作，負責在貨架上堆放箱子。
The company promised to hire more workers for the night shift.
公司承諾為夜班雇用更多勞工。
Construction workers wear hard hats to protect their heads on site.
建築工人在工地戴安全帽來保護頭部。
Otis trained the new workers on how to use the safety equipment.
Otis 訓練新進員工如何正確使用安全設備。
- boss
informal; the person in charge of workers
- management
the group that makes decisions about workers
文法句型
workers + verb (plural)
the workers — referring to a group
用法筆記
This sense is frequently used in the plural (the workers) to refer to the entire non-management workforce of a company or industry. In news and union contexts, 'workers' contrasts with 'management' or 'employers'.
常見錯誤
3. the social class whose members have very little property or wealth and earn mone
勞動階級
無權勢、靠體力維生的社會階層
the social class whose members have very little property or wealth and earn money through manual or low-wage labour — commonly used in political or economic discussion, almost always in the plural form 'workers'.
The party said it would fight for the rights of workers across the country.
該政黨表示會為全國勞動階級的權益而奮鬥。
the rights of workers — political/social framing
Heloísa's family of workers has lived in the same town for five generations.
Heloísa 的勞動家庭已在同一個小鎮住了五代。
In the nineteenth century, workers often lived in small houses next to the factories.
在十九世紀，勞動階級通常住在工廠旁邊的小房子裡。
The new law is meant to protect workers from unsafe working conditions.
這項新法律旨在保護勞動者免受不安全的工作環境所害。
Workers around the world faced job losses during the economic crisis.
經濟危機期間，世界各地的勞動階級都面臨失業困境。
- working class
the full sociological term for this social group
- proletariat
academic or Marxist term; much more formal than 'workers'
- labour force
economic term for all people available for work
- wage earners
emphasizes that these people are paid wages (not salaries)
- capitalists
people who own businesses and capital, contrasted in class analysis
- upper class
the highest social class, with inherited wealth and power
文法句型
the workers — social/political class
workers' + rights/interests/movement
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 2: sense 2 refers to a person's role within a specific company, while sense 3 refers to a broad social, economic, or political class. Sense 3 is almost always used in the plural and often appears with words like 'rights', 'class', 'movement', 'struggle'.
常見錯誤
4. a female bee, ant, wasp, or similar insect that does most of the colony's tasks
工蟻；工蜂
群居昆蟲中不繁殖但負責勞動的雌性
a female bee, ant, wasp, or similar insect that does most of the colony's tasks — such as gathering food, building the nest, and caring for the young — but does not reproduce.
The worker bees carry pollen from flower to flower all day.
工蜂整天在花朵之間採集花粉。
worker bee — most common compound
In an ant colony, the workers build tunnels and defend the entrance.
在蟻群中，工蟻負責挖掘隧道並守衛入口。
Sivan watched a single worker ant drag a dead beetle across the path.
Sivan 看著一隻工蟻把一隻死甲蟲拖過小路。
Without enough workers, the hive cannot store food for the winter.
如果工蜂數量不足，蜂巢就無法儲存過冬的食物。
A wasp colony has hundreds of workers that feed the young wasps.
一個黃蜂群有數百隻工蜂負責餵養幼蜂。
文法句型
worker + bee/ant/wasp/termite
用法筆記
This sense is restricted to biology contexts about social insects. The word is almost always paired with the insect name: 'worker bee', 'worker ant', 'worker wasp', etc. 'Worker' alone is uncommon; readers expect the insect name to follow.