drudgery

noun

drudg·ery ˈdrəj-rē

ˈdrə-jə-rē

plural drudgeries

Synonyms of drudgery

: dull, irksome, and fatiguing work : uninspiring or menial labor

the drudgery of his job

Choose the Right Synonym for drudgery

work, labor, travail, toil, drudgery, grind mean activity involving effort or exertion.

work may imply activity of body, of mind, of a machine, or of a natural force.

too tired to do any work

labor applies to physical or intellectual work involving great and often strenuous exertion.

farmers demanding fair compensation for their labor

travail is bookish for labor involving pain or suffering.

years of travail were lost when the house burned

toil implies prolonged and fatiguing labor.

his lot would be years of back-breaking toil

drudgery suggests dull and irksome labor.

an editorial job with a good deal of drudgery

grind implies labor exhausting to mind or body.

the grind of the assembly line

Examples of drudgery in a Sentence

He hated the drudgery of his job. in the “good old days” household servants led lives filled with much drudgery and little pleasure

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Fuller’s ideas are hard to summarize, but always seem to reach toward a utopian vision of escaping the drudgery of everyday life. — Christopher Cox, Vanity Fair, 26 Aug. 2026 Aesthetic experiences were here not reserved for museums or the elite, but folded in along with daily drudgeries. — Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 24 Aug. 2026 In an interview with Fortune, Kopp described the company’s mission as freeing CFOs from the drudgery that keeps them chained to spreadsheets long after everyone else has logged off. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 18 Aug. 2026 Enduring drudgery requires discipline, Bronin owns the patent on that. — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 15 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for drudgery

Word History

Etymology

see drudge entry 1

First Known Use

1550, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of drudgery was in 1550

See more words from the same year

Browse Nearby Words

drudge

drudgery

drudging

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Cite this Entry

Style

“Drudgery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drudgery. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Kids Definition

drudgery

noun

drudg·ery ˈdrəj-(ə-)rē

plural drudgeries

: hard or dull work

drudgery

noun

Synonyms of drudgery

Examples of drudgery in a Sentence

Word History

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

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