overwork
pronunciation
How to pronounce overwork in British English:
UK [ˌəʊvəˈwɜ:k]
How to pronounce overwork in American English:
US [ˌoʊvərˈwɜrk]
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- Noun:
- the act working too much or too long
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- Verb:
- use too much
- work excessively hard
Word Origin
- overwork (v.)
- "to cause to work too hard," 1520s, from over- + work (v.). Old English oferwyrcan meant "to work all over," i.e. "to decorate the whole surface of." Related: Overworked; overworking.
- overwork (n.)
- "work beyond a person's strength," 1819; see overwork (v.). Old English oferweorc meant "a superstructure, sarcophagus, tomb."
Example
- 1. The japanese term for " no leave , no life " is karoshi - literally , death from overwork ; and the japanese are arguably the world champion overworkers .
- 2. After deaths from overwork and starvation , there is the plain mass murder of the 1937-38 terror : the sleepless nights spent waiting for the knock on the door ; the bags kept by the bed in readiness for arrest .
- 3. Experts are divided but anecdotal evidence suggests that reading long lists in newspapers can help reduce stress and the risk of " karoshi " - the japanese term for death by overwork .
- 4. Kim jong il , north korea 's dictator since 1994 , died on december 17th of a presumed heart attack in one of his palaces , though the official version said he died of overwork on a train .