laborious

  • 1Laborious — La*bo ri*ous, a. [L. laboriosus, fr. labor labor: cf. F. laborieux.] 1. Requiring labor, perseverance, or sacrifices; toilsome; tiresome. [1913 Webster] Dost thou love watchings, abstinence, or toil, Laborious virtues all? Learn these from Cato.… …

    The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • 2laborious — [adj1] hard, difficult arduous, backbreaking, burdensome, effortful, fatiguing, forced, heavy, herculean*, labored, onerous, operose, ponderous, rough go*, stiff, strained, strenuous, tiresome, toilsome, tough, tough job*, wearing, wearisome,… …

    New thesaurus

  • 3laborious — index difficult, faithful (diligent), industrious, onerous, operose, oppressive, painful, painstaking …

    Law dictionary

  • 4laborious — (adj.) late 14c., hard working, industrious, from O.Fr. laborios arduous, wearisome; hard working (12c., Mod.Fr. laborieux), from L. laboriosus toilsome, wearisome, troublesome, from labor (see LABOR (Cf. labor) (n.)). Meaning costing much labor …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 5laborious — ► ADJECTIVE 1) requiring considerable time and effort. 2) showing obvious signs of effort. DERIVATIVES laboriously adverb …

    English terms dictionary

  • 6laborious — [lə bôr′ē əs] adj. [ME < OFr laborios < L laboriosus < labor, LABOR] 1. involving or calling for much hard work; difficult 2. industrious; hardworking 3. LABORED SYN. HARD laboriously adv. laboriousness n …

    English World dictionary

  • 7laborious — laboriously, adv. laboriousness, n. /leuh bawr ee euhs, bohr /, adj. 1. requiring much work, exertion, or perseverance: a laborious undertaking. 2. characterized by or requiring extreme care and much attention to detail: laborious research. 3.… …

    Universalium

  • 8laborious — la|bo|ri|ous [ lə bɔriəs ] adjective 1. ) a laborious job or process is long, difficult, and often boring: We eventually began the laborious task of sorting through his papers. 2. ) a laborious way of doing something is slow or boring and… …

    Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • 9laborious — UK [ləˈbɔːrɪəs] / US [ləˈbɔrɪəs] adjective 1) a laborious job or process is long, difficult, and often boring We eventually began the laborious task of sorting through his papers. 2) a laborious way of doing something is slow or boring and… …

    English dictionary

  • 10laborious — la|bo|ri|ous [ləˈbo:riəs] adj taking a lot of time and effort laborious process/task/business etc ▪ Collecting the raw materials proved a long and laborious task. ▪ the laborious business of drying the crops >laboriously adv ▪ A beetle began… …

    Dictionary of contemporary English