Meaning & use
unpaid work
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
Work that you do without receiving any money, often to help others or gain experience.
Grammar: No plural and no 'a/an': She does unpaid work at the shelter.
Patterns
- do unpaid work
- unpaid work for someone
- unpaid work experience
She does unpaid work at the animal shelter every weekend.
Many students take unpaid work to build their resumes.
The report says unpaid work at home is still mostly done by women.
noununcountabletechnical
Tasks such as cooking, cleaning, and caring for family members that are done without pay.
Grammar: Often used in economics and social studies; no article needed.
Patterns
- unpaid work in the home
- the value of unpaid work
Economists are trying to measure the value of unpaid work in the home.
Unpaid work like childcare supports the whole economy.
Common combinations
- do unpaid work
- He does unpaid work for a charity two days a week.
- unpaid work experience
- The course includes three months of unpaid work experience.
- unpaid work placement
- She found an unpaid work placement at a local newspaper.
- take on unpaid work
- Don't take on unpaid work if you can't afford the time.
Synonyms and how they differ
- volunteer work
- Volunteer work is done willingly for an organization, while unpaid work can also include forced or family duties.
- unpaid labor
- Unpaid labor is more formal and often used in economics; unpaid work is more general.
Opposites
Word family
- unpaid adjective
- Not receiving money for work done.
- pay verb
- To give money for work or goods.
Commonly confused: unpaid work or voluntary work?
unpaid work vs voluntary work
Voluntary work is always chosen freely; unpaid work may be required, as in an internship.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'unpaid work' correctly?
Choose one answer.
'Unpaid work' is uncountable, so it takes no article and no plural. 'An unpaid work' and 'unpaid works' are wrong; 'an unpaid work' is also wrong because 'unpaid' starts with a vowel sound and would need 'an' if it were countable.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “unpaid work”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.