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job

Pronunciation: /dʒɒb/

The English word “job” has 20 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. A task.
  2. An economic role for which a person is paid.
  3. Plastic surgery.
  4. A sex act.
  5. A task, or series of tasks, carried out in batch mode (especially on a mainframe computer).
  6. A public transaction done for private profit; something performed ostensibly as a part of official duty, but really for private gain; a corrupt official business.
  7. A robbery or heist.
  8. Any affair or event which affects one, whether fortunately or unfortunately.
  9. A thing or whatsit (often used in a vague way to refer to something whose name one cannot recall).
  10. The police as a profession, act of policing, or an individual police officer.
  11. Synonym of penis.

verb

  1. To do odd jobs or occasional work for hire.
  2. To work as a jobber.
  3. To take the loss, usually in a demeaning or submissive manner.
  4. To buy and sell for profit, as securities; to speculate in.
  5. To subcontract a project or delivery in small portions to a number of contractors.
  6. To seek private gain under pretence of public service; to turn public matters to private advantage.
  7. To hire or let in periods of service.
  8. To peck (of a bird); (more generally) to poke or prod (at, into).
  9. To pierce or poke (someone or something), typically with a sharp or pointed object; to stab.

Etymology

From the phrase jobbe of work (“piece of work”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from a variant of Middle English gobbe (“mass, lump”); or perhaps related to Middle English jobben (“to jab, thrust, peck”), or Middle English choppe (“piece, bargain”). More at gob, jab, chop.

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.