work on

1. 1.

   to exert effort in order to do, make, or perform something

   “the child worked at the multiplication table until she had it down cold”

   Synonymswork at

   Broaderwork

   Narrowerbelabor
2. 2.

   shape, form, or improve a material

   “work stone into tools”

   “process iron”

   “work the metal”

   Synonymsworkprocess

   Broadertransform

   Narrowerhot-workcoldworkoverworkreworkracktooltill

Questions about work on

What does work on mean?

work on means "to exert effort in order to do, make, or perform something". That is the primary sense; the word has 2 in total, listed in full on this page.

What is another word for work on?

Close synonyms include work at, work, process. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

Is work on a common word?

work on is banded "Common" — everyday vocabulary in speech and writing. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.