working

English

Pronunciation

(General American) IPA^(key): /ˈwɝkɪŋ/
(Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈwɜːkɪŋ/
Audio (General American) (file)
Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)kɪŋ
Hyphenation: work‧ing

Etymology 1

From Middle English werking, werkynge, warkynge, worchinge, from Old English wyrcung (“working, work”), verbal noun of wyrcan (“to work”), equivalent to work +‎ -ing. Cognate with Scots wirking, warking, Dutch werking, German Wirkung.

Noun

working (countable and uncountable, plural workings)

(usually in the plural) Operation; action.
Method of operation.
(arithmetic) The incidental or subsidiary calculations performed in solving an overall problem.
Be sure to check your working.
Fermentation.
(of bodies of water) Becoming full of a vegetable substance.

Derived terms

misworking

Translations

operation; action

Finnish: työ (fi), työskenteleminen (fi), työn tekeminen (fi), toimiminen (fi)

Portuguese: serviço (pt) m

method of operation

Finnish: toimintatapa (fi), työskentelytapa
French: fonctionnement (fr) m

German: Ansatz (de) m
Portuguese: funcionamento (pt) m

fermentation

Finnish: käyminen (fi)

becoming full of a vegetable substance

Finnish: rehevöityminen

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Translations to be checked‌: "action of the verb work"

French: ^{(please verify)} fonctionnement (fr) m

Scots: ^{(please verify)} wirkin

Etymology 2

From work +‎ -ing. Compare Scots wirkand, werkand, warkand (“working”), Dutch werkend (“working, acting”), German wirkend (“acting, working”).

Verb

working

present participle of work
Leave him alone; he's working.

Adjective

working (not comparable)

That is or are functioning.
a working ventilator
That suffices but requires additional work.
a working copy of the script
In paid employment.
working mothers
Of or relating to employment.
the working week
Enough to allow one to use something.
a working knowledge of computers

Synonyms

(functioning): functioning; up (mainly used of computers)
(that suffices but requires further work): draft, provisional, temporary
(in paid employment): employed, in employment
(of or relating to employment): work
(enough to allow one to use something): basic

Antonyms

(functioning): broken, broken-down, down (mainly used of computers)

Derived terms

working pressure
working timetable

Hyponyms

known-working

Translations

functioning

Bulgarian: please add this translation if you can
Finnish: toimiva (fi)
Georgian: მუშა (muša)
Portuguese: funcional (pt)

Romanian: funcțional (ro)
Russian: работоспособный (ru) (rabotosposobnyj), рабо́чий (ru) (rabóčij)
Turkish: please add this translation if you can

suffices but requires additional work

Finnish: työ- (fi), keskeneräinen (fi)

Polish: roboczy (pl)

in paid employment

Finnish: työssäkäyvä (fi); työtätekevä (working class)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: yrkesaktiv
Nynorsk: yrkesaktiv

of or relating to employment

Finnish: työ- (fi)

Polish: roboczy (pl)

enough to allow one to use something

Finnish: riittävä (fi)

Related terms

work

References

working in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.