labor of love

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labor of love

Work that is done for pleasure rather than money. Katherine spends all of her free time knitting baby clothes for her friends. It must be a labor of love.
See also: labor, love, of
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

labor of love

Fig. a task that is either unpaid or badly paid and that one does simply for one's own satisfaction or pleasure or to please someone whom one likes or loves. Jane made no money out of the biography she wrote. She was writing about the life of a friend and the book was a labor of love. Mary hates knitting, but she made a sweater for her boyfriend. What a labor of love.
See also: labor, love, of
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

labor of love

Work done for one's satisfaction rather than monetary reward. For example, The research took three years but it was a labor of love. This expression appears twice in the New Testament (Hebrews 6:10, Thessalonians 1:3), referring to those who do God's work as a labor of love. [c. 1600]
See also: labor, love, of
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

a labour of love

COMMON A labour of love is a task that you do because you enjoy it or feel strongly that it is worth doing. Note: `Labour' is spelled `labor' in American English. There is no doubt that his debut novel is a labour of love, and obviously very close to his heart. They concentrated on restoring buildings such as the Victorian greenhouse, an expensive labour of love. Note: This appears in the Bible in 1 Thessalonians 1:3, `Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ'.
See also: labour, love, of
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012

a labour of love

a task done for the love of a person or for the work itself.
See also: labour, love, of
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

a ˌlabour of ˈlove

a hard task that you do because you want to, not because it is necessary: This tablecloth is a real labour of love. It took her years to make it.
See also: labour, love, of
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

labor of love, a

Work done for the pleasure of accomplishment or from personal interest rather than for monetary reward or from a sense of duty; this book, for example. The phrase appears in two Epistles of St. Paul in the New Testament, one to the Hebrews (6:10) and the other to the Thessalonians (1:3), both referring to the faithful who do God’s work as a labor of love.
See also: labor, of
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer
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References in periodicals archive ?
"It has been a labour of love over a number of years.
ROOMS WITH A VIEW; penthouse apartment with city panorama goes on the market
"It's just a continuation of the first Labour of Love really because we've gone into the 80s and the electronic reggae age."
UB40 BETRAYED ME; LOVE AND HATE REGGAE SINGER RULES OUT GROUP REUNION A decade after chart-topping band's acrimonious split, Ali Campbell tells how he still can't forgive his brothers
A selection of favourites ensued from albums Labour of Love I and II, including Wear You To The Ball, Lonely Girl, Groovin', Cherry O Baby, Sweet Cherrie, Please Don't Make Me Cry, Kingston Town and Wedding Day, followed by newer material, Silhouette, and Fijian Sunrise.
Spectacular show from '80s reggae favourites; REVIEW: UB40, Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff
Labour Of Love, Sengupta's debut Bengali feature, will transport you to the crumbling suburbs of Kolkota where a married couple who work different shifts co-exist.
ADFF: aACAyLabour Of Love' is told without words
It is evident that grace abounds in this couple and the fruits of their lifetime labour of love will last forever.
N.F.P
"It's really a labour of love, doing this," said Mary O'Connor, founder of the recently formed group.
Babies' first garments give comfort
Fiction and deliberate misinterpretation emerged as the most challenging aspect of contemporary border art: Wim Delvoye's Labour of Love, 1992, continued the artist's displacement of Flemish decorative tradition.
Biennale
Judy, who'd turned up in person to plead her case at the council meeting, said: "This is not a commercial venture for my family - it's a labour of love."
Murray wants to be minted
Old Wounds has been a labour of love for Trev, as he first started working on it back in 2013 after his band Deerhart disbanded.
Putting his faith in supporter power
Charlie said: "These gnomes are a labour of love. It's something different to a T-shirt."
These will be perfect for the garden when we finally get some sun-sheee-iiine; GNOASIS ROCKERS FOR YOUR ROCKERY; (And no, you don't get a free roller with it)
And after two years the "labour of love" is finally finished and had its premiere at the Vue cinema in Gateshead's Trinity Square.
New Sir Bobby film premieres
It's a chance to hear hits such as We Close Our Eyes, Call Me, King of Wishful Thinking, Labour of Love, Looking for Linda, Violently, Ideal World, Forgotten Town and Harvest for the World.
Preview; GO WEST, HUE AND CRY AND THE CHRISTIANS Philharmonic Hall
They are also joined by Hue and Cry, of Labour of Love fame, and The Christians, best known for Harvest For The World.
GIGS OF THE WEEK
The inside flap describes Roger Smith's monumental work as a 'labour of love' and your reviewer can only conclude that Mr Smith is deeply, head-over-heels in love with Formula One.
A well crafted labour of love; BOOKREVIEW
It's a labour of love for the volunteers, who come from the CANNOCK Chase Cinema Organ Appreciation Society.
Historic ABC pipes to breathe the sea air
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