obair, f. (gs. oibre, pl. oibreacha).Work. 1. (a) Labour, activity, task. ~ a dhéanamh, to work. Déan do chuid oibre, get on with your work. Dul i gceann oibre, to set to work. ~ throm, éadrom, heavy, light, work. ~ an lae, the day’s work. ~ oíche, night-work. ~ ar thasc, task-work. ~ chonartha, contract work. ~ spáide, phinn, spade-, pen-, work. ~ earraigh, thalmhaíochta, spring, agricultural, work. ~ intinne, mental work. ~ scoile, bhaile, school-, home-, work. ~ tí, domestic work. Prov:As an ~ a thagann an fhoghlaim, practice makes perfect. Lá oibre, a day’s work; a working day. S.a. capall 1, fear11(d), tosach. (b) Employment. ~ a bheith agat, to have work, to be in employment. Bheith as ~, to be out of work. Fear gan ~, workless man. Cuireadh as ~ iad, they were put out of work. 2. (a) (Product of) work. ~ láimhe, handiwork. ~ shnáthaide, needlework. ~ lása, lacework. ~ phaistí, phíosála, patchwork. ~ chloiche, stonework, masonry. ~ adhmaid, ghloine, leathair, woodwork, glasswork, leatherwork. ~ ealaíne, work of art. Is breá an ~ atá sa doras sin, there is fine workmanship in that door. Prov:Molann an ~ an saor, ‘the work commends the craftsman,’ a man may be judged by his achievements. (b)Theol:Oibreacha Dé, the works of God. (c) (Of meritorious acts) Oibreacha corpartha na trócaire, corporal works of mercy. 3. Strenuous effort, difficulty. Tá ~ agam leo, I find them hard to manage. Beidh ~ agat é a dhéanamh, you will have a job to do it. Le h~ a fuair mé uaidh é, I had difficulty in getting it from him. Thug sé ~ dom, it took me all my time. Ba mhór an ~ dó gan mé a bhualadh, he could hardly restrain himself from hitting me. Níorbh ~ liom é, I would think nothing of it.Ba bheag an ~ lae dó é, it was the least he could do. Tá ~ aige a bheith an fad sin amuigh, he can hardly be so long gone. 4. (a)Carry-on, conduct. Cén ~ í seo ort? What is this you are up to? Is ait an ~ atá air, it is a strange way for him to act. A leithéid d’~! Such carry-on! Seo ~ an diabhail atá ort, this is the devil’s work you are doing. Cuir uait na hoibreacha sin ort, drop those antics of yours. (b) Cause of wonder. Is mór an ~ mura bhfuil a shaibhreas déanta aige, it is surprising if he hasn’t made a fortune. Is mór an ~ liomsa mura bhfuil sé fíor, I’ll be greatly surprised if it is not true. Ba mhór an ~ nár maraíodh é, it is a wonder he was not killed. 5. (a) Constructional operation. ~ thógála, construction work. Oibreacha poiblí, public works. (b) Plant, manufactory. Oibreacha uisce, ola, iarainn, waterworks, oilworks, ironworks. (c) Structural part. (Of boat) Íseal san ~, low in structure. (d) Operative parts. Oibreacha cloig, meaisín, the works of a clock, of a machine. (e) Fortification. Oibreacha cosanta, defensive works. Oibreacha tosaigh, advance works. 6. (Used in manner of vn., intransitively, with ag)(a) (Of person) Ag ~, at work, working. Ag ~ ar an talamh, in oifig, working on the land, in an office. Ag ~ ar fhéar, ar leabhar, working at hay, on a book. Ag ~ le peann, ar pá, working with a pen, for pay. Tá sé ag ~ dó féin, he is self-employed. (b) (Of thing) Rud a chur ag ~, to get sth. going. Coinnigh ag ~ é, keep it going. Níl an clog ag ~, the clock is not going. 7. (With ar) Ar ~, in action, proceeding, started. Tá an troid ar ~, the fight has started. Bí ar ~ air, make a start at it. Ná cuir ar ~ é, don’t start him off. Tá sibh ar ~ arís, you are at it again. Chonaic mé ar ~ é, I saw him in action. Tá sé ar ~ le huair, it has been going on for an hour.