What does housework mean?
Housework refers to the practical work needed to maintain a home, including cleaning, washing clothes, cooking, shopping, and managing other household responsibilities. It is an English compound formed from 'house' and 'work,' and its meaning has developed beyond the literal idea of work performed inside a dwelling to include routine domestic tasks generally. The word is common in both British and American English and is often used with verbs such as 'do,' 'share,' and 'help with.' Housework is usually understood as collective, ongoing activity rather than as a countable set of individual jobs, although individual tasks may be called chores. The expression can also carry social connotations because household labor has historically been assigned unequally, especially to women. In contemporary discussion, however, it is increasingly used neutrally when describing the division of domestic responsibilities among housemates.
nounThe work involved in maintaining a home, especially cleaning, laundry, cooking, and other household chores. The term may also refer more broadly to domestic work done by members of a household.
- Work performed in or around a home, especially cleaning and other household chores.
"They share the housework and take turns cooking and cleaning."
"The children take turns doing the housework."
"Many parents still expect women to do most of the housework."
The plural is occasionally attested but is rare; housework is usually treated as an uncountable mass noun.
"The household shared the houseworks throughout the week."
Housework is a job title for something no one gets paid to love.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does housework come from?
Housework is an English compound formed from 'house' and 'work,' both of which were established in English long before the compound itself. 'House' descends from Old English hūs, while 'work' comes from Old English werc. Closely related forms include household, householder, and housekeeper, with homework forming a later parallel compound.
How housework is actually used
Housework is normally treated as an uncountable mass noun: people say 'do housework' rather than 'do a housework.' The plural 'houseworks' is occasionally used but is uncommon in everyday speech.
Easily confused with housework
Housework means domestic tasks performed in or around the home, whereas homework refers to school assignments completed by a student.