overwork
/ˌoʊvɚˈwɝk/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: 2.62 in modern English
18
Scrabble Score
8
Letters
3
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
Example Sentences
- "to overwork a horse"
- "For some years locomotives and coaches have been overworked and undermaintained to a degree without precedent in British railway history, and the leeway in maintenance now to be made up is very great."
- "The cracking sound, he explained, as far as I, a non-plumber, could understand, was the sound of the overworked, undermaintained and weirdly installed heating unit’s core rupturing and spilling water into the basement."
- "If you live in Washington D.C., Houston or Atlanta, it might be time to take a vacation. Those three cities, followed by Seattle and Chicago, are the most overworked cities in the United States, according to a study released by the mobile technology company Kisi this past week."
- "It turns out that overworking your brain with either physical or mental exercise may lower your ability to delay self-gratification."
- "One of China’s most prominent e-commerce companies is facing intense public backlash over allegations that it overworks its employees."
Etymology
From Middle English overwerken, possibly from Old English oferwyrċan (“to overwork, overlay”), equivalent to over- + work. Cognate with Dutch overwerken (“to overwork”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: overwerken, oferwyrċan, overwerc, oferweorc
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌoʊvɚˈwɝk/
- British English: /ˌəʊvəˈwɜːk/