Meaning & use
workhorse person
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Meanings
nouncountableinformal
A person who works very hard and keeps doing a large share of the work, often without complaining or getting much praise.
Grammar: Countable and usually used with 'a' or 'the'; it describes one person, and the plural is 'workhorse people' or, more naturally, just 'workhorses'.
Patterns
- a workhorse in the team
- the office workhorse
- be a real workhorse
Maya is the workhorse person in our group: she finishes her own tasks and then helps everyone else.
He may not be the most creative member of the team, but he is a workhorse person who never misses a deadline.
When the manager left, the workhorse person in the department kept everything running for three months.
nouncountableinformalfigurative
Someone who is relied on to do the hardest or most tiring part of a job, especially behind the scenes.
Grammar: Often followed by 'behind the scenes' or 'of the team' to say where the person does the unglamorous work.
Patterns
- the workhorse person behind something
- a workhorse person of the team
She was the workhorse person behind the whole project, though the director gave the speech.
Every successful campaign has a workhorse person who handles the boring daily tasks.
Word forms
| plural | workhorse people |
|---|---|
| plural | workhorses |
Common combinations
- a real workhorse person
- In this office she is a real workhorse person, always the last to leave.
- the workhorse person of the team
- As the workhorse person of the team, he takes on the jobs nobody else wants.
- workhorse person behind the scenes
- A workhorse person behind the scenes made sure the event went smoothly.
- rely on a workhorse person
- Good managers know they can rely on a workhorse person during busy periods.
- turn into a workhorse person
- Long hours and little thanks can turn a keen employee into a tired workhorse person.
Synonyms and how they differ
- workhorse
- The shorter form is far more common and can describe a person or a machine; 'workhorse person' is used mainly when the speaker wants to make clear they mean a human.
- grafter
- British informal and often suggests long, physical effort, while 'workhorse person' can also describe mental or office work.
- hard worker
- Neutral and more polite; 'workhorse person' can suggest the person is being used rather than appreciated.
Opposites
Word family
- workhorse noun
- A person or machine that does a lot of hard, steady work.
- work verb
- To do a job or task, especially for money.
- workaholic noun
- Someone who cannot stop working; stronger and more disapproving than 'workhorse person'.
Commonly confused: workhorse person or workhorse?
workhorse person vs workhorse
'Workhorse' alone is the normal word and can also mean a strong machine or vehicle; add 'person' only when you need to make clear you mean a human being.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'workhorse person' in the most natural way?
Choose one answer.
'A workhorse person' needs the article 'a' before the singular countable noun, and 'in the office' is the natural phrase for a workplace. Option 2 misses the article, option 3 uses the unrelated phrase 'in person', and option 4 uses 'of the office', which sounds wrong here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “workhorse person”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.