day laborer

noun

: one who works for daily wages especially as an unskilled laborer

Examples of day laborer in a Sentence

They hire day laborers to pick the apples.
Recent Examples on the Web But the day laborers told NBC4 the contents felt soft and soggy, like meat. Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2023 Additionally, city leaders implemented policies that targeted day laborers and pushed for a program to deputize police officers to perform immigration enforcement. Sarah Mosqueda, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2024 Most of the residents here are day laborers, and time off work often means lost income. Jeffrey Okoro, STAT, 24 Nov. 2023 From day laborers to trendsetters, Zapata captures a Latinx community holding tight to tradition and reclaiming the L.A. narrative. Kamren Curiel, Los Angeles Times, 8 Feb. 2024 The organization has been trying to help Mr. Palacios, the elderly house painter, who waits at the curb with other day laborers even when his legs ache and go numb. Jeffrey E. Singer, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2024 Two Haitian day laborers’ wedding ends with the groom’s death. Pablo Sandoval, Variety, 23 Nov. 2023 Authorities allege that Sam hired day laborers on Nov. 7 to dispose of four large trash bags. Liam Quinn, Peoplemag, 19 Dec. 2023 Subsequent lawsuits against the Arizona law succeeded in striking down additional provisions, including those against hiring day laborers or denying bonds to undocumented immigrants. Rafael Carranza, The Arizona Republic, 2 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'day laborer.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1528, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of day laborer was in 1528

Dictionary Entries Near day laborer

Cite this Entry

“Day laborer.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/day%20laborer. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

day laborer

noun
: one who works by the day or for daily wages especially as an unskilled laborer
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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