Meaning & use
workhouse
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
In Britain and Ireland in the past, a place where very poor people lived and worked in return for food and a bed.
Grammar: Countable: a workhouse, the workhouse. Often used with 'the' when referring to the system.
Patterns
- in the workhouse
- go into the workhouse
- the workhouse system
In the 19th century, many poor families had to enter the workhouse.
The old workhouse building is now a museum.
Conditions in the workhouse were deliberately harsh to discourage people from seeking help.
Word forms
| plural | workhouses |
|---|
Common combinations
- enter the workhouse
- The family was so poor that they had to enter the workhouse.
- workhouse system
- The workhouse system was abolished in the 20th century.
- workhouse master
- The workhouse master was responsible for discipline.
- die in the workhouse
- Many elderly people died in the workhouse.
Synonyms and how they differ
- poorhouse
- The American term for a similar institution; 'workhouse' is the usual British term.
Word family
Commonly confused: workhouse or workhouse?
workhouse vs workhouse
Do not confuse with 'workhouse' as a place for the poor and 'workhouse' as a place for minor offenders, which is 'house of correction'.
Practice
What was a workhouse?
Choose one answer.
A workhouse provided food and shelter in exchange for labor, and was a last resort for the very poor. A factory paid wages; a school and hospital had different purposes.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “workhouse”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.