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work on

   Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.07 sec.
work (up)on something 
1. . to repair or tinker with something. (Upon is formal and less commonly used than on.) He's out in the kitchen, working upon his tax forms. He's working on his car.
2. . [for something] to have the desired effect on something. (Upon is formal and less commonly used than on.) This medicine should work well upon your cold. I hope it will work on your cold.
See also: work

work on someone 

1. . Lit. [for a physician] to treat someone; [for a surgeon] to operate on someone. The doctor is still working on your uncle. There is no news yet. They are still working on the accident victims.
2. . Fig. [for someone] to try to convince someone of something. I'll work on her, and I am sure she will agree. They worked on Max for quite a while, but he still didn't agree to testify.
3. Fig. [for something, such as medication] to have the desired effect on someone. This medicine just doesn't work on me. Your good advice doesn't seem to work on Sam.
See also: work

work on something

to repair, build, or adjust something. The carpenter worked on the fence for three hours. Bill is out working on his car engine.
See also: work


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? References in classic literature
I do not know which to put first, the effect of Tuskegee's work on the Negro, or the effect on the attitude of the white man to the Negro.
When my father started for himself, there were many men in Manchester who were willing to labor in this way, but they had no factory to work in, no machinery to work with, and no raw cotton to work on, simply because all this indispensable plant, and the materials for producing a fresh supply of it, had been appropriated by earlier comers.
This was one of the speeches of the marchande de mode to Adrienne, and the dear girl repeated it in her mind, as she sat at work on me, without the slightest distrust of the heartless selfishness it so ill concealed.
 
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