Outwork

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /aʊtˈwɜːk/

Definitions

1. To surpass someone in work or effort, often implying a degree of competitiveness in productivity
2. To execute additional tasks beyond what is normally expected, thereby achieving more than others
3. To excel through diligence and industriousness, particularly in comparison to peers needing encouragement to achieve similar results

Etymology: "Outwork" is a plain compound: the prefix "out-", which in English can mean "beyond" or "surpassing," joined to "work." The verb therefore means to surpass others by working harder or more effectively than they do. The prefix comes down from Old English "ūt," an adverb meaning "outside" or "away from within," which over the centuries spread into many verbs like "outrun," "outlast," and "outshine," each describing one thing going beyond another. The "work" half traces back to Old English "weorc," which covered both labor and a finished product, so an "outwork" originally sits comfortably as either a piece of labor done beyond the usual bounds or a thing made outside a main structure. The verb sense of outperforming peers through diligence is the figurative extension of that spatial "beyond" meaning, applied to effort rather than to physical position.

Synonyms: exceed, surpass, outperform, outdo, outshine

Antonyms: fail, underperform, fall short, lose, be beaten