Ask Difference

Work vs. Service — What's the Difference?

By Urooj Arif & Fiza Rafique — Updated on March 19, 2024
Work refers to tasks or activities, while service is work performed for the benefit of others.
Work vs. Service — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Work and Service

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Key Differences

Work encompasses a broad range of activities, including physical, mental, and creative tasks undertaken to achieve a specific outcome or to fulfill certain responsibilities. On the other hand, service specifically refers to activities or tasks performed to help or benefit someone else, whether individuals, groups, organizations, or communities. Service is inherently other-oriented, emphasizing the impact and value provided to others.
While work might not always involve interaction with others or have an immediate impact on someone else, service is characterized by its focus on providing value, assistance, support, or convenience to others. For example, writing a novel can be considered work, as it involves creative effort and skill, but teaching someone to read is a service, as it directly benefits the learner.
The motivation behind work can vary widely, from financial necessity to personal fulfillment or ambition. In contrast, service is often motivated by a desire to contribute to the well-being of others, altruism, or the fulfillment of a societal, professional, or ethical obligation. This distinction highlights the different drivers behind work and service, though both can be rewarding and meaningful.
In the professional realm, work is often associated with one's occupation or career, encompassing a wide range of professions and industries. Service, however, can be both a professional obligation (as in the case of service industries) and a voluntary act (such as community service or volunteer work). This reflects the versatile nature of service as both a component of professional roles and a standalone activity.
Both work and service contribute significantly to society, the economy, and individual lives. Work drives economic activity, innovation, and personal development, while service strengthens communities, supports the needy, and enhances the quality of life for recipients. The interplay between work and service underscores their complementary roles in fostering a functional, compassionate, and progressive society.
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Comparison Chart

Definition

Activities undertaken to achieve a goal or fulfill responsibilities.
Tasks performed to benefit or help others.

Focus

Achieving specific outcomes or fulfillment.
Providing value or assistance to others.

Motivation

Financial gain, personal satisfaction, ambition.
Altruism, societal obligation, professional duty.

Interaction

Can be solitary or collaborative.
Often involves direct interaction with beneficiaries.

Outcome

Tangible or intangible products or achievements.
Improvement or convenience offered to others.

Professional Role

Broad, covering all occupations and industries.
Specific to service industries or voluntary acts.

Impact

Primarily on the individual or project.
Primarily on recipients or the community.

Examples

Writing, building, designing.
Teaching, caregiving, consulting.

Compare with Definitions

Work

Creative or artistic production.
Her latest work is a masterpiece of modern art.

Service

Professional work that prioritizes the welfare of others.
Social work is a profession deeply rooted in service.

Work

Exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something.
The architect's work on the new building is innovative.

Service

An act of assistance or benefit to others.
Volunteering at the shelter is a rewarding service.

Work

Employment, especially as a means of earning one's livelihood.
She finds her work in the nonprofit sector incredibly rewarding.

Service

The action of helping or doing work for someone.
The nurse's service to her patients goes beyond mere duty.

Work

A task or series of tasks performed to fulfill a job.
His work involves analyzing data and creating reports.

Service

Activities performed by a public servant or employee under an organization.
His service in the fire department is commendable.

Work

The sum total of one's contributions to their profession.
His life’s work has advanced the field of science significantly.

Service

A system supplying a public need.
The city's public transportation service has improved.

Work

Physical or mental effort or activity directed toward the production or accomplishment of something
Cleaning the basement was a lot of work.

Service

The action of helping or doing work for someone
Millions are involved in voluntary service

Work

The part of a day devoted to an occupation or undertaking
Met her after work.

Service

A ceremony of religious worship according to a prescribed form
A funeral service

Work

Such effort or activity by which one makes a living; employment
Looking for work.

Service

A system supplying a public need such as transport, communications, or utilities such as electricity and water
A regular bus service

Work

A trade, profession, or other means of livelihood
His work is fixing cars.

Service

A periodic routine inspection and maintenance of a vehicle or other machine
He took his car in for a service

Work

One's place of employment
Should I call you at home or at work?.

Service

A set of matching crockery used for serving a particular meal
A dinner service

Work

Something that one is doing, making, or performing, especially as an occupation or undertaking; a duty or task
Begin the day's work.

Service

(in tennis and other racket sports) the action or right of serving to begin play.

Work

An amount of such activity either done or required
A week's work.

Service

The formal delivery of a document such as a writ or summons.

Work

The action or effect of an agency
The antibiotic seems to be doing its work.

Service

Perform routine maintenance or repair work on (a vehicle or machine)
Ensure that gas appliances are serviced regularly

Work

Something that has been produced or accomplished through the effort, activity, or agency of a person or thing
This scheme was the work of a criminal mastermind. Erosion is the work of wind, water, and time.

Service

(of a male animal) mate with (a female animal)
One dog could presumably service several bitches in a day

Work

An act; a deed
"I have seen all the works that are done under the sun.
And, behold, all is vanity" (Ecclesiastes 1:14).

Service

Work that is done for others as an occupation or business
Has done service for us as a consultant.

Work

An artistic creation, such as a painting, sculpture, or literary or musical composition, or a creative result of other human activity
An early work of Matisse.
A scholarly work of great importance.

Service

The performance of work or duties for a superior or as a servant
Found the butler's service to be excellent.

Work

Works The output of a writer, artist, or composer considered or collected as a whole
The works of Bach.

Service

An act or a variety of work done for others, especially for pay
Offers a superior service to that of his competitors.
Provides full catering services.

Work

Works Engineering structures, such as bridges or dams.

Service

Assistance; help
Was of great service to him during his illness.

Work

A fortified structure, such as a trench or fortress.

Service

An act of assistance or benefit; a favor
My friend did me a service in fixing the door.

Work

Needlework, weaving, lacemaking, or a similar textile art.

Service

The serving of food or the manner in which it is served
The service was good, but the food was lousy.

Work

A piece of such textile art.

Service

A set of dishes or utensils
A silver tea service.

Work

A material or piece of material being processed in a machine during manufacture
Work to be turned in the lathe.

Service

Employment in duties or work for another, as for a government
Has been in the company's service for 15 years.

Work

Works (used with a sing. or pl. verb) A factory, plant, or similar building or complex of buildings where a specific type of business or industry is carried on. Often used in combination
A steelworks.

Service

A government branch or department and its employees
The diplomatic service.

Work

Works Internal mechanism
The works of a watch.

Service

A department or branch of a hospital staff that provides specified patient care
The anesthesiology service.

Work

The manner, style, or quality of working or treatment; workmanship.

Service

The armed forces of a nation
Joined the service right after college.

Work

Abbr. w(Physics) The transfer of energy from one physical system to another, especially the application of a force to move a body in a certain direction. It is calculated as the product of the force and the distance over which it is applied and is expressed in joules, ergs, and foot-pounds.

Service

A branch of the armed forces of a nation.

Work

Works Moral or righteous acts or deeds
Salvation by faith rather than works.

Service

The installation, maintenance, or repairs provided or guaranteed by a dealer or manufacturer
A dealer with full parts and service.

Work

(Informal) The full range of possibilities; everything. Used with the
Ordered a pizza with the works.

Service

The provision to the public of something, especially a utility
A town without sewer service.

Work

(Slang) A thorough beating or other severe treatment. Used with the
Took him outside and gave him the works.

Service

The system or equipment used to provide something to the public
The electrical service was damaged in the storm.

Work

Of, relating to, designed for, or engaged in work.

Service

The right of serving in many court games.

Work

To exert oneself physically or mentally in order to do, make, or accomplish something.

Service

A serve
Her first service hit the net.

Work

To be employed; have a job.

Service

A religious rite or formal ceremony
Held services in the evening.
A memorial service.

Work

To function; operate
How does this latch work?.

Service

Copulation with a female animal. Used of male animals, especially studs.

Work

To function or operate in the desired or required way
The telephone hasn't worked since the thunderstorm.

Service

(Law) The serving of a legal process, such as a summons or court order.

Work

To have a given effect or outcome
Our friendship works best when we speak our minds.

Service

The material, such as cord, used in binding or wrapping rope.

Work

To have the desired effect or outcome; prove successful
This recipe seems to work.

Service

An answering service.

Work

To exert an influence. Used with on or upon
Worked on her to join the group.

Service

To make fit for use; adjust, repair, or maintain
Service a car.

Work

To arrive at a specified condition through gradual or repeated movement
The stitches worked loose.

Service

To provide services to
That cable company services most households in the area.

Work

To proceed or progress slowly and laboriously
Worked through the underbrush.
Worked through my problems in therapy.

Service

To make interest payments on (a debt).

Work

To move in an agitated manner, as with emotion
Her mouth worked with fear.

Service

To copulate with (a female animal). Used of a male animal, especially studs.

Work

To behave in a specified way when handled or processed
Not all metals work easily.

Service

Of or relating to the armed forces of a country.

Work

To ferment.

Service

Intended for use in supplying or serving
A service elevator.
The service entrance.

Work

To strain in heavy seas so that the joints give slightly and the fastenings become slack. Used of a boat or ship.

Service

Offering repairs or maintenance
A service guarantee.
A road service area.

Work

To sail against the wind.

Service

Offering services to the public in response to need or demand
A service industry.

Work

To undergo small motions that result in friction and wear
The gears work against each other.

Service

An act of being of assistance to someone.
I say I did him a service by ending our relationship
– now he can freely pursue his career.

Work

To cause or effect; bring about
Working miracles.

Service

(economics) The practice of providing such a service as economic activity.
Hair care is a service industry.

Work

To cause to operate or function; actuate, use, or manage
Worked the controls.
Can work a lathe.

Service

A department in a company, an organization, a government department, etc.

Work

To shape or forge
"Each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor" (Edgar Allan Poe).

Service

(computing) A function that is provided by one program or machine for another.
This machine provides the name service for the LAN.

Work

To make or decorate by needlework
Work a sampler.

Service

The state of being subordinate to or employed by an individual or group
Lancelot was at the service of King Arthur.

Work

To solve (a problem) by calculation and reasoning.

Service

The military.
I did three years in the service before coming here.

Work

To knead, stir, or otherwise manipulate in preparation
Work the dough before shaping it.

Service

A set of dishes or utensils.
She brought out the silver tea service.

Work

To bring to a specified condition by gradual or repeated effort or work
Finally worked the window open.
Worked the slaves to death.

Service

(sports) The act of initially starting, or serving, the ball in play in tennis, volleyball, and other games.
The player had four service faults in the set.

Work

To make, achieve, or pay for by work or effort
Worked her way to the top.
Worked his passage on the ship.

Service

A religious rite or ritual.
The funeral service was touching.

Work

(Informal) To arrange or contrive. Often used with it
Worked it so that her weekends are free.

Service

(legal) The serving, or delivery, of a summons or writ.
The service happened yesterday.

Work

To make productive; cultivate
Work a farm.

Service

A taxi shared among unrelated passengers, each of whom pays part of the fare; often, it has a fixed route between cities.

Work

To cause to work
Works his laborers hard.

Service

A musical composition for use in churches.

Work

To excite or provoke
Worked the mob into a frenzy.

Service

(obsolete) Profession of respect; acknowledgment of duty owed.

Work

To gratify, cajole, or enchant artfully, especially for the purpose of influencing
The politician worked the crowd. The comedian worked the room with flawless rhythm.

Service

(nautical) The materials used for serving a rope, etc., such as spun yarn and small lines.

Work

To use or manipulate to one's own advantage; exploit
Learned how to work the system.
Worked his relatives for sympathy.

Service

Access to resources such as hotel rooms and web-based videos without transfer of the resources' ownership.

Work

To carry on an operation or function in or through
The agent who works that area.
Working the phones for donations.

Service

Service tree.

Work

To ferment (liquor, for example).

Service

The sorb; the fruit of this tree.

Work

Employment.

Service

(transitive) To serve.
They service the customer base.

Work

Labour, occupation, job.
My work involves a lot of travel.

Service

(transitive) To perform maintenance.
He is going to service the car.

Work

The place where one is employed.
He hasn’t come home yet; he’s still at work.

Service

To attack.
To service a target; target servicing

Work

(by extension) One's employer.
I want to go to the reunion concert, but I'm not sure if my work will give me the time off.

Service

A name given to several trees and shrubs of the genus Pyrus, as Pyrus domestica and P. torminalis of Europe, the various species of mountain ash or rowan tree, and the American shad bush (see Shad bush, under Shad). They have clusters of small, edible, applelike berries.

Work

(dated) A factory; a works.

Service

The act of serving; the occupation of a servant; the performance of labor for the benefit of another, or at another's command; attendance of an inferior, hired helper, slave, etc., on a superior, employer, master, or the like; also, spiritual obedience and love.
Madam, I entreat true peace of you, Which I will purchase with my duteous service.
God requires no man's service upon hard and unreasonable terms.

Work

Effort.

Service

The deed of one who serves; labor performed for another; duty done or required; office.
I have served him from the hour of my nativity, . . . and have nothing at his hands for my service but blows.
This poem was the last piece of service I did for my master, King Charles.
To go on the forlorn hope is a service of peril; who will understake it if it be not also a service of honor?

Work

Effort expended on a particular task.
Holding a brick over your head is hard work. It takes a lot of work to write a dictionary.

Service

Office of devotion; official religious duty performed; religious rites appropriate to any event or ceremonial; as, a burial service.
The outward service of ancient religion, the rites, ceremonies, and ceremonial vestments of the old law.

Work

Sustained human effort to overcome obstacles and achieve a result.
We know what we must do. Let's go to work.
We don't have much time. Let's get to work piling up those sandbags.

Service

Hence, a musical composition for use in churches.

Work

Something on which effort is expended.
There's lots of work waiting for me at the office.

Service

Duty performed in, or appropriate to, any office or charge; official function; hence, specifically, military or naval duty; performance of the duties of a soldier.
When he cometh to experience of service abroad . . . ne maketh a worthy soldier.

Work

(physics) A measure of energy expended in moving an object; most commonly, force times distance. No work is done if the object does not move.
Work is done against friction to drag a bag along the ground.

Service

Useful office; advantage conferred; that which promotes interest or happiness; benefit; avail.
The stork's plea, when taken in a net, was the service she did in picking up venomous creatures.

Work

A measure of energy that is usefully extracted from a process.

Service

Profession of respect; acknowledgment of duty owed.

Work

(heading) Product; the result of effort.

Service

The act and manner of bringing food to the persons who eat it; order of dishes at table; also, a set or number of vessels ordinarily used at table; as, the service was tardy and awkward; a service of plate or glass.
There was no extraordinary service seen on the board.

Work

The result of a particular manner of production.
There's a lot of guesswork involved.

Service

The act of bringing to notice, either actually or constructively, in such manner as is prescribed by law; as, the service of a subpŒna or an attachment.

Work

Something produced using the specified material or tool.
We've got some paperwork to do before we can get started. The piece was decorated with intricate filigree work.

Service

The materials used for serving a rope, etc., as spun yarn, small lines, etc.

Work

(countable) A literary, artistic, or intellectual production.
It is a work of art.
The poetic works of Alexander Pope

Service

The act of serving the ball.

Work

(countable) A fortification.
William the Conqueror fortified many castles, throwing up new ramparts, bastions and all manner of works.

Service

Work done by one person or group that benefits another;
Budget separately for goods and services

Work

The staging of events to appear as real.

Service

A company or agency that performs a public service; subject to government regulation

Work

(mining) Ore before it is dressed.

Service

The act of public worship following prescribed rules;
The Sunday service

Work

The equipment needed to inject a drug (syringes, needles, swabs etc.)
Tell me you're using clean works at least.

Service

An act of help or assistance;
He did them a service

Work

(intransitive) To do a specific task by employing physical or mental powers.
He’s working in a bar.

Service

Employment in or work for another;
He retired after 30 years of service

Work

Followed by in (or at, etc.) Said of one's workplace (building), or one's department, or one's trade (sphere of business).
I work in a national park
She works in the human resources department
He mostly works in logging, but sometimes works in carpentry

Service

A force that is a branch of the armed forces

Work

Followed by as. Said of one's job title
I work as a cleaner.

Service

The performance of duties by a waiter or servant;
That restaurant has excellent service

Work

Followed by for. Said of a company or individual who employs.
She works for Microsoft
He works for the president

Service

Periodic maintenance on a car or machine;
It was time for an overhaul on the tractor

Work

Followed by with. General use, said of either fellow employees or instruments or clients.
I work closely with my Canadian counterparts
You work with computers
She works with the homeless people from the suburbs

Service

Tableware consisting of a complete set of articles (silver or dishware) for use at table

Work

(intransitive) To effect by gradual degrees;
To work into the earth

Service

(sports) a stroke that puts the ball in play;
His powerful serves won the game

Work

(transitive) To effect by gradual degrees.
He worked his way through the crowd
The dye worked its way through
Using some tweezers, she worked the bee sting out of her hand

Service

The act of delivering a writ or summons upon someone;
He accepted service of the subpoena

Work

(transitive) To embroider with thread.

Service

Canadian writer (born in England) who wrote about life in the Yukon Territory (1874-1958)

Work

(transitive) To set into action.
He worked the levers.

Service

A means of serving;
Of no avail
There's no help for it

Work

(transitive) To cause to ferment.

Service

The act of mating by male animals;
The bull was worth good money in servicing fees

Work

(intransitive) To ferment.

Service

(law) the acts performed by an English feudal tenant for the benefit of his lord which formed the consideration for the property granted to him

Work

(transitive) To exhaust, by working.
The mine was worked until the last scrap of ore had been extracted.

Service

Be used by; as of a utility;
The sewage plant served the neighboring communities
The garage served to shelter his horses

Work

(transitive) To shape, form, or improve a material.
He used pliers to work the wire into shape.

Service

Make fit for use;
Service my truck
The washing machine needs to be serviced

Work

(transitive) To operate in a certain place, area, or speciality.
She works the night clubs
The salesman works the Midwest

Service

Mate with;
Male animals serve the females for breeding purposes

Work

(transitive) To operate in or through; as, to work the phones.

Work

(transitive) To provoke or excite; to influence.
The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy.

Work

(transitive) To use or manipulate to one’s advantage.
She knows how to work the system.

Work

To cause to happen or to occur as a consequence.
I cannot work a miracle.

Work

(transitive) To cause to work.
He is working his servants hard.

Work

(intransitive) To function correctly; to act as intended; to achieve the goal designed for.
He pointed at the car and asked, "Does it work"?;
He looked at the bottle of pain pills, wondering if they would work;
My plan didn’t work

Work

To influence.
They worked on her to join the group.

Work

(intransitive) To move in an agitated manner.
His fingers worked with tension.
A ship works in a heavy sea.

Work

(intransitive) To behave in a certain way when handled
This dough does not work easily;
The soft metal works well

Work

To cause (someone) to feel (something); to do unto somebody (something, whether good or bad).

Work

To hurt; to ache.

Work

To pull off; to wear, perform, etc. successfully or to advantage.
I would never have thought those pieces would go together, but she is working it like nobody's business.

Work

Exertion of strength or faculties; physical or intellectual effort directed to an end; industrial activity; toil; employment; sometimes, specifically, physical labor.
Man hath his daily work of body or mindAppointed.

Work

The matter on which one is at work; that upon which one spends labor; material for working upon; subject of exertion; the thing occupying one; business; duty; as, to take up one's work; to drop one's work.
Come on, Nerissa; I have work in handThat you yet know not of.
In every work that he began . . . he did it with all his heart, and prospered.

Work

That which is produced as the result of labor; anything accomplished by exertion or toil; product; performance; fabric; manufacture; in a more general sense, act, deed, service, effect, result, achievement, feat.
To leave no rubs or blotches in the work.
The work some praise,And some the architect.
Fancy . . . Wild work produces oft, and most in dreams.
The composition or dissolution of mixed bodies . . . is the chief work of elements.

Work

Specifically: (a) That which is produced by mental labor; a composition; a book; as, a work, or the works, of Addison. (b) Flowers, figures, or the like, wrought with the needle; embroidery.
I am glad I have found this napkin; . . . I'll have the work ta'en out,And give 't Iago.

Work

Structures in civil, military, or naval engineering, as docks, bridges, embankments, trenches, fortifications, and the like; also, the structures and grounds of a manufacturing establishment; as, iron works; locomotive works; gas works.

Work

Manner of working; management; treatment; as, unskillful work spoiled the effect.

Work

The causing of motion against a resisting force. The amount of work is proportioned to, and is measured by, the product of the force into the amount of motion along the direction of the force. See Conservation of energy, under Conservation, Unit of work, under Unit, also Foot pound, Horse power, Poundal, and Erg.
Energy is the capacity of doing work . . . Work is the transference of energy from one system to another.

Work

Ore before it is dressed.

Work

Break; twist.

Work

The causing of motion against a resisting force, measured by the product of the force into the component of the motion resolved along the direction of the force.
Energy is the capacity of doing work. . . . Work is the transference of energy from one system to another.

Work

Ore before it is dressed.

Work

To exert one's self for a purpose; to put forth effort for the attainment of an object; to labor; to be engaged in the performance of a task, a duty, or the like.
O thou good Kent, how shall I live and work,To match thy goodness?
Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you.
Whether we work or play, or sleep or wake,Our life doth pass.

Work

Hence, in a general sense, to operate; to act; to perform; as, a machine works well.
We bend to that the working of the heart.

Work

Hence, figuratively, to be effective; to have effect or influence; to conduce.
We know that all things work together for good to them that love God.
This so wrought upon the child, that afterwards he desired to be taught.
She marveled how she could ever have been wrought upon to marry him.

Work

To carry on business; to be engaged or employed customarily; to perform the part of a laborer; to labor; to toil.
They that work in fine flax . . . shall be confounded.

Work

To be in a state of severe exertion, or as if in such a state; to be tossed or agitated; to move heavily; to strain; to labor; as, a ship works in a heavy sea.
Confused with working sands and rolling waves.

Work

To make one's way slowly and with difficulty; to move or penetrate laboriously; to proceed with effort; - with a following preposition, as down, out, into, up, through, and the like; as, scheme works out by degrees; to work into the earth.
Till body up to spirit work, in boundsProportioned to each kind.

Work

To ferment, as a liquid.
The working of beer when the barm is put in.

Work

To labor or operate upon; to give exertion and effort to; to prepare for use, or to utilize, by labor.
He could have told them of two or three gold mines, and a silver mine, and given the reason why they forbare to work them at that time.

Work

To produce or form by labor; to bring forth by exertion or toil; to accomplish; to originate; to effect; as, to work wood or iron into a form desired, or into a utensil; to work cotton or wool into cloth.
Each herb he knew, that works or good or ill.

Work

To produce by slow degrees, or as if laboriously; to bring gradually into any state by action or motion.
So the pure, limpid stream, when foul with stainsOf rushing torrents and descending rains,Works itself clear, and as it runs, refines,Till by degrees the floating mirror shines.

Work

To influence by acting upon; to prevail upon; to manage; to lead.

Work

To form with a needle and thread or yarn; especially, to embroider; as, to work muslin.

Work

To set in motion or action; to direct the action of; to keep at work; to govern; to manage; as, to work a machine.
Knowledge in building and working ships.
Now, Marcus, thy virtue's the proof;Put forth thy utmost strength, work every nerve.
The mariners all 'gan work the ropes,Where they were wont to do.

Work

To cause to ferment, as liquor.
Tears of joy for your returning spilt,Work out and expiate our former guilt.
The sun, that rolls his chariot o'er their heads,Works up more fire and color in their cheeks.

Work

Activity directed toward making or doing something;
She checked several points needing further work

Work

A product produced or accomplished through the effort or activity or agency of a person or thing;
It is not regarded as one of his more memorable works
The symphony was hailed as an ingenious work
He was indebted to the pioneering work of John Dewey
The work of an active imagination
Erosion is the work of wind or water over time

Work

The occupation for which you are paid;
He is looking for employment
A lot of people are out of work

Work

Applying the mind to learning and understanding a subject (especially by reading);
Mastering a second language requires a lot of work
No schools offer graduate study in interior design

Work

The total output of a writer or artist (or a substantial part of it);
He studied the entire Wagnerian oeuvre
Picasso's work can be divided into periods

Work

A place where work is done;
He arrived at work early today

Work

(physics) a manifestation of energy; the transfer of energy from one physical system to another expressed as the product of a force and the distance through which it moves a body in the direction of that force;
Work equals force times distance

Work

Exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity;
I will work hard to improve my grades
She worked hard for better living conditions for the poor

Work

Be employed;
Is your husband working again?
My wife never worked
Do you want to work after the age of 60?
She never did any work because she inherited a lot of money
She works as a waitress to put herself through college

Work

Have an effect or outcome; often the one desired or expected;
The voting process doesn't work as well as people thought
How does your idea work in practice?
This method doesn't work
The breaks of my new car act quickly
The medicine works only if you take it with a lot of water

Work

Perform as expected when applied;
The washing machine won't go unless it's plugged in
Does this old car still run well?
This old radio doesn't work anymore

Work

Shape, form, or improve a material;
Work stone into tools
Process iron
Work the metal

Work

Give a work-out to;
Some parents exercise their infants
My personal trainer works me hard
Work one's muscles

Work

Proceed along a path;
Work one's way through the crowd
Make one's way into the forest

Work

Operate in a certain place, area, or specialty;
She works the night clubs
The salesman works the Midwest
This artist works mostly in acrylics

Work

Proceed towards a goal or along a path or through an activity;
Work your way through every problem or task
She was working on her second martini when the guests arrived
Start from the bottom and work towards the top

Work

Move in an agitated manner;
His fingers worked with tension

Work

Cause to happen or to occur as a consequence;
I cannot work a miracle
Wreak havoc
Bring comments
Play a joke
The rain brought relief to the drought-stricken area

Work

Cause to work;
He is working his servants hard

Work

Prepare for crops;
Work the soil
Cultivate the land

Work

Behave in a certain way when handled;
This dough does not work easily
The soft metal works well

Work

Have and exert influence or effect;
The artist's work influenced the young painter
She worked on her friends to support the political candidate

Work

Operate in or through;
Work the phones

Work

Cause to operate or function;
This pilot works the controls
Can you work an electric drill?

Work

Provoke or excite;
The rock musician worked the crowd of young girls into a frenzy

Work

Gratify and charm, usually in order to influence;
The political candidate worked the crowds

Work

Make something, usually for a specific function;
She molded the riceballs carefully
Form cylinders from the dough
Shape a figure
Work the metal into a sword

Work

Move into or onto;
Work the raisins into the dough
The student worked a few jokes into his presentation
Work the body onto the flatbed truck

Work

Make uniform;
Knead dough
Work the clay until it is soft

Work

Use or manipulate to one's advantage;
He exploit the new taxation system
She knows how to work the system
He works his parents for sympathy

Work

Find the solution to (a problem or question) or understand the meaning of;
Did you solve the problem?
Work out your problems with the boss
This unpleasant situation isn't going to work itself out
Did you get it?
Did you get my meaning?
He could not work the math problem

Work

Cause to undergo fermentation;
We ferment the grapes for a very long time to achieve high alcohol content
The vintner worked the wine in big oak vats

Work

Go sour or spoil;
The milk has soured
The wine worked
The cream has turned--we have to throw it out

Work

Arrive at a certain condition through repeated motion;
The stitches of the hem worked loose after she wore the skirt many times

Common Curiosities

Can work be fulfilling without involving service?

Yes, work can be fulfilling through personal achievement, creativity, problem-solving, and contributing to broader goals or innovations, even if it doesn't directly involve service.

What distinguishes work from service?

Work encompasses all tasks or activities for achieving goals, while service specifically focuses on activities that benefit others.

Can a job involve both work and service?

Yes, many jobs involve both elements, especially in professions aimed at helping or providing for others, such as healthcare, education, and public safety.

Is volunteer work considered service?

Yes, volunteer work is a form of service as it involves providing help or benefits to others without financial compensation.

How does society benefit from service?

Society benefits from service through improved well-being, support for the needy, stronger communities, and the fulfillment of public needs.

What roles do work and service play in personal development?

Both work and service contribute to personal development by enhancing skills, fostering empathy and social responsibility, and providing a sense of purpose.

Can service have economic benefits?

Yes, services, especially in professional sectors, contribute significantly to the economy by meeting public needs, creating jobs, and fostering a healthy society.

How do motivations for work and service differ?

Motivations for work can include financial gain, personal fulfillment, or ambition, whereas service is often motivated by altruism, ethical or societal obligations.

Why is service important in professional roles?

Service in professional roles is important for addressing the needs of individuals and communities, ensuring welfare, and fulfilling societal obligations.

How can individuals balance work and service in their lives?

Individuals can balance work and service by integrating service-oriented tasks into their careers, engaging in volunteer work, or choosing professions that blend both aspects.

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Author Spotlight

Written by
Urooj Arif
Urooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
Co-written by
Fiza Rafique
Fiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.

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