Meanings
- working; busy; at work.
Near-synonyms: on the clock; on the case, on it
2 more examples
Unlike your typical office drama, wherein characters’ lives intersect entertainingly both inside and outside work, the premise of Severance rests in the twisted implications of total compartmentalization: What if you could separate out your work memories (and thereby your work self), thereby forming a totally distinct identity while on the job?
April 14 2022, Delia Cai, “Severance, the New York Times’s Twitter Guidelines, and the Forever Illusion of Work-Life Balance”, in Vanity FairIn the United States, if you want to die on the job, you should become a logger or a commercial fisher. These two jobs occupy the top two spots on the highest risk careers.
2025 October 21, Rose George, “‘I knew in my head we were dying’: the last voyage of the Scandies Rose”, in The GuardianSynonyms: on the clock, on the case, on it
- slangHaving sex.
- jargonlaw enforcementBeing a police officer, as contrasted with a civilian.
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseworking; busy; at work.
More synonyms by meaning
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Cite this entry
on the job. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20job
“on the job.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20job. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “on the job,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20job.
Source: on the job on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.