8 ADJ A Labour politician or voter is a member of a Labour Party or votes for a Labour Party. □ …a Labour MP. □ Millions of Labour voters went unrepresented.
9 VERB If you labour under a delusion or misapprehension, you continue to believe something which is not true. □ [V + under ] She laboured under the illusion that I knew what I was doing. □ [V + under ] You seem to be labouring under considerable misapprehensions.
10 VERB If you labour a point or an argument, you keep making the same point or saying the same thing, although it is unnecessary. □ [V n] I don't want to labour the point but there it is.
11 N‑UNCOUNT Labour is the last stage of pregnancy, in which the baby is gradually pushed out of the womb by the mother. □ I thought the pains meant I was going into labour. COLLOCATIONS labour NOUN
1
adjective + labour : hard, manual; forced, unpaid
5
noun + labour : child, immigrant, migrant, slave
adjective + labour : semi-skilled, skilled, unskilled; organized; cheap
la |bour camp (labour camps ) in AM, use labor camp N‑COUNT A labour camp is a kind of prison, where the prisoners are forced to do hard, physical work, usually outdoors.
la|boured /le I bə r d/
1 ADJ If someone's breathing is laboured , it is slow and seems to take a lot of effort. □ From his slow walk and laboured breathing, Ginny realized he was far from well.
2 ADJ If something such as someone's writing or speech is laboured , they have put too much effort into it so it seems awkward and unnatural. □ Daniel's few encounters with Gold had been characterized by a laboured politeness.
la|bour|er /le I bərə r / (labourers ) in AM, use laborer N‑COUNT A labourer is a person who does a job which involves a lot of hard physical work. □ Her father had been a farm labourer.
la |bour force (labour forces ) N‑COUNT [usu sing] The labour force consists of all the people who are able to work in a country or area, or all the people who work for a particular company. [BUSINESS ]
la bour-inte nsive ADJ Labour-intensive industries or methods of making things involve a lot of workers. Compare capital-intensive . [BUSINESS ] □ Construction remains a relatively labour-intensive industry.
la |bour mar|ket (labour markets ) N‑COUNT [usu sing] When you talk about the labour market , you are referring to all the people who are able to work and want jobs in a country or area, in relation to the number of jobs there are available in that country or area. [BUSINESS ] □ The longer people have been unemployed, the harder it is for them to compete in the labour market.
La |bour Par|ty N‑PROPER In Britain, the Labour Party is the main left-of-centre party. It believes that wealth and power should be shared fairly and public services should be free for everyone. □ The Labour Party and the teaching unions condemned the idea.
la |bour re|la |tions in AM use labor relations N‑PLURAL Labour relations refers to the relationship between employers and employees in industry, and the political decisions and laws that affect it. □ We have to balance good labor relations against the need to cut costs.
la bour-saving ADJ [usu ADJ n] A labour-saving device or idea makes it possible for you to do something with less effort than usual. □ …labour-saving devices such as washing machines.
lab|ra|dor /læ brədɔː r / (labradors ) or labrador retriever , Labrador retriever N‑COUNT A labrador or labrador retriever is a type of large dog with short, thick black or gold hair.
la|bur|num /ləbɜː r nəm/ (laburnums ) N‑VAR A laburnum or a laburnum tree is a small tree which has long stems of yellow flowers.
laby|rinth /læ b I r I nθ/ (labyrinths )
1 N‑COUNT If you describe a place as a labyrinth , you mean that it is made up of a complicated series of paths or passages, through which it is difficult to find your way. [LITERARY ] □ [+ of ] …the labyrinth of corridors.
2 N‑COUNT If you describe a situation, process, or area of knowledge as a labyrinth , you mean that it is very complicated. [FORMAL ] □ [+ of ] …a labyrinth of conflicting political and sociological interpretations.
laby|rin|thine /læ b I r I nθa I n/
1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you describe a place as labyrinthine , you mean that it is like a labyrinth. [FORMAL ] □ The streets of the Old City are narrow and labyrinthine.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you describe a situation, process, or field of knowledge as labyrinthine , you mean that it is very complicated and difficult to understand. [FORMAL ] □ …his failure to understand the labyrinthine complexities of the situation.
lace /le I s/ (laces , lacing , laced )
1 N‑UNCOUNT Lace is a very delicate cloth which is made with a lot of holes in it. It is made by twisting together very fine threads of cotton to form patterns. □ …a plain white lace bedspread.
2 N‑COUNT [usu pl] Laces are thin pieces of material that are put through special holes in some types of clothing, especially shoes. The laces are tied together in order to tighten the clothing. □ [+ of ] Barry was sitting on the bed, tying the laces of an old pair of running shoes.
3 VERB If you lace something such as a pair of shoes, you tighten the shoes by pulling the laces through the holes, and usually tying them together. □ [V n] I have a good pair of skates, but no matter how tightly I lace them, my ankles wobble. ● PHRASAL VERB Lace up means the same as lace . □ [V P n] He sat on the steps, and laced up his boots. □ [V n P ] Nancy was lacing her shoe up when the doorbell rang.