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work·house
 workhouse
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- pronunciation:
- wuhrk
haUs
| part of speech: |
noun |
| definition 1: |
an institution that houses and feeds the poor but requires them to do labor on site.
Making rope was a common, and painful, form of work in the nineteenth century workhouse.- similar words:
- almshouse, poorhouse
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| definition 2: |
a U.S. prison for minor offenders serving short sentences, who are employed at manual labor while confined; house of correction.
He was convicted for petty theft and sent to the workhouse. |
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