What does laboriousness mean?
Laboriousness is the noun meaning the quality of requiring sustained effort, or the amount of work involved in completing something. It is especially useful when the focus is not on the task itself but on its burdensome quality: a brief journey may be spoiled by the laboriousness of the preparations. The word often appears in formal or analytical writing and commonly carries a note of tedium, awkwardness, or disproportionate effort, although those feelings need not always be present. It is related to laborious, but is more abstract and less directly concerned with describing a task or person as demanding. In everyday speech, people often say “a lot of effort” or “how hard it was” instead. Laboriousness is nevertheless a precise term for measuring or discussing the work built into an activity, including repetitive procedures, long processes, and technical preparation. Its distinctly formal tone makes it well suited to historical, scientific, or procedural description, while its Latin ancestry connects it with labor, work, and effort.
nounThe quality of requiring much effort, or the amount of work involved in accomplishing something.
- The quality or degree of requiring sustained effort; the amount of work involved in a task or process.
"Despite the apparent simplicity of the task, the laboriousness of preparing the documents delayed the project."
"The laboriousness of restoring the damaged painting was greater than the conservators had anticipated."
"Her analysis identifies the careful, painstaking laboriousness behind the manuscript's preparation."
This plural is rare; the word is normally used as an uncountable abstract noun.
"The researchers compared the laboriousnesses of several different transcription methods."
From Latin labor, meaning “work,” laboriousness literally captures the work built into an undertaking.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of laboriousness
The word was formed in English from laborious, meaning “involving much work,” plus the suffix -ness. Laborious comes through French from Latin laboriosus, a derivative of labor, meaning “work” or “toil”; the same Latin root also underlies labor and laboratory. The Latin root refers to work or the taking of trouble, while the English suffix turns the adjective into an abstract noun naming that quality.
How laboriousness is actually used
Laboriousness is formal and somewhat literary. It often suggests that an activity is demanding, repetitive, or tedious, although substantial effort alone does not necessarily imply dislike or hardship. It is more common in analytical, historical, scientific, or procedural writing than in everyday conversation.
Easily confused with laboriousness
Laborious is an adjective describing a task as involving much effort, whereas laboriousness is the noun naming that demanding quality or the effort involved.