work for

work for (someone or something)

1. To be an employee of some person, group, or organization. I worked for my father for three years before I had enough money to go to college. I used to work for Stem Corp. for a few years before getting a job with Flem Corp. I never like working for the government—too much responsibility with not enough pay.
2. To work in exchange for something, as a sum or salary of money. Never do commissions for anyone who wants you to work for exposure as opposed to a proper fee. I offered to work for food and supplies, since they didn't have any money to pay me. I'm not willing to work for less than $60,000 a year.
3. To have a particular goal, cause, or purpose at the heart of one's labor. We've been working for a peaceful resolution to the conflict for nearly two years now. The last administration worked for a trade deal that would benefit both countries.
4. To act as a representative of or work on behalf of someone or some group. Our firm works for veterans who have been left behind by the system. I spend every Saturday working pro bono for those who can't afford legal representation.
5. To be appropriate or effective for some particular purpose. That trick only works for computer running their previous operating system. This lotion is meant to treat hives, but it will work for mosquito bites, too.
6. To be suitable, acceptable, or appropriate for someone or something. Sorry, those times really don't work for me. A: "We'd be willing to offer your company an extra $2 million to settle the case immediately." B: "Yes, that works for us."
See also: work
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

work for someone

 
1. to be employed by someone. She works for Scott Wallace. Who do you work for?
2. . to work as a substitute for someone. I will work for you while you are having your baby. Right now, I am working for Julie, who is out sick.
See also: work

work for something

 
1. to work for a group, company, etc. Everyone at the picnic works for the same employer. We work for the telephone company.
2. . to work for a certain amount of money. She says she works for a very good wage. I won't work for that kind of pay.
3. to work for an intangible benefit, such as satisfaction, glory, honor, etc. The pay isn't very good. I just work for the fun of it. Sam says he works for the joy of working.
See also: work
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

work for

v.
1. To be employed by or work on behalf of someone or some organization: I've worked for the government for the past ten years. I started my own company, so now I work for myself.
2. To provide labor in exchange for something: The traveler didn't want any money; he said he would work for food.
3. To work on behalf of some cause: Our organization works for the humane treatment of animals.
4. To function or operate correctly when used by someone: The VCR always seems to work for me, but whenever someone else tries it, it freezes up. They should stick with the same strategy, because it worked for them last year.
5. To function or operate correctly when used for some purpose: The bug spray only works for mosquitoes.
6. To meet the requirements of someone; fit someone: Unless it has three bedrooms, I don't think the house will work for us. Can we find a restaurant that works for all of us?
7. To be appropriate for someone; befit someone: I'm not sure that color works for you.
See also: work
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • work for (someone or something)
  • a big fish in a small pond
  • a big frog in a small pond
  • agree with
  • a down-and-outer
  • a whole team and the dog under the wagon
  • a holy terror
  • a good Samaritan
  • a live one
  • diamond in the rough, a
References in periodicals archive
Domestic work for some female EVWs in Britain began in transit camps where they worked in the kitchens.
Transnational journeys and domestic histories
For example, Nissen found work for former floor nurses, whose MS-related fatigue made those jobs impossible, with hospitals that needed help processing radiology reports.
Can a phone line make your career?
Baumgarten and Dean noticed an affinity between some of his photographs and Richter's paintings of the time, so Dean tried to track the paintings down as the next work for her show.
Strange bedfellows: Mark Godfrey on the artist as curator
The teachers were refreshingly frank." Through their work directly in classrooms during the academic year, scientists model their passion for their own work for the students.
Mutual benefits of teacher/scientist partnerships
There has been a continuity in the expectation of paid work for men, with the result being that women have tended to experience more guilt, stress, and conflict by virtue of choosing to add work to their family responsibilities.
Guest editorial: reworking work and family issues for fathers
Although this combination of DCS factors may work for an individual that desires employment with high demands, low control, and low support, for others this is a formula for burnout, which is associated with decreased job satisfaction and difficulties with job maintenance (Schalock et al.).
Work-related stress and the Demand-Control-Support framework: implications for the P x E fit model
Often times in the field, fire fighters work for a period of time, exit the burning building, recover, and then reenter the building to work again.
Physiological responses of female fire fighters to repeated work bouts
As long as the retiree continues to work for other people (either for pay or in a voluntary capacity), satisfactoriness continues to play a role in work adjustment.
Counseling for continued Career development after retirement: an application of the theory of work adjustment
The more skilled we become as workers, the more likely we are to work for employers that are able to make these kinds of accommodations.
Returning to work after disability; what you should know
Ultimately, we advocate a more locally responsive, culturally appropriate model of professional intervention; an ongoing evolution of social work theory and methods that is neither Northern nor merely a modest adaptation of Northern social work, but rather an integration with local practices and norms, creating a more culturally competent model of social work for the Arab Muslim world.
Principles of social work practice in the Muslim Arab world
The Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) essentially bans CTO for nonexempt employees who do not work for the government, although in some cases the FLSA permits CTO accrual and use within a two-week period.
Sort it out: missing the mark on employee classification or compensation will cost you
But across the income spectrum, women still prefer paid work for several reasons: to have money of their own, to maintain social contact with co-workers, and to have a sense of their place in the world.
The work-family dilemma
I'd like to invite the characters from Dilbert to try practicing the spirituality of work for a while.
Don't be a Dilbert: the workplace, according to Dilbert, is hell. Might a spirituality of work help?
An old inscription, surely Christian, reads: "Lift the stone, or cleave the wood, and I am there." A knowledge that for the organic life of the world certain unpleasant work must be done, and a consecration to that work for the good of man and the glory of God, will alone bring integrity into some of the world's drudgery.
Integrity at work: Many Americans seek fulfillment by working for material wealth, but only those who find a work worth doing -- and do it well -- gain integrity and true happiness. (First Principles)
More to the point, who would want to work for a company that adopts a Big Brother mentality?
Employees Online the productivity issue