1
: the amount of work or of working time expected or assigned
students with a heavy workload
2
: the amount of work performed or capable of being performed (as by a mechanical device) usually within a specific period

Examples of workload in a Sentence

Students complained about the heavy workload.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
These improvements are critical to meet the demands of agentic AI, which may require hundreds of times more resources than generative AI workloads spread across data center resources. Jim McGregor, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025 The result is other classroom teachers must fill in, increasing their already overburdened workload. Michael Maguire, Boston Herald, 17 Mar. 2025 Not only is our workload driven by the economy but also by weather conditions. Courier-News, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2025 Tech companies are building and retrofitting data centers to handle artificial intelligence computing workloads. Jeff Marks, CNBC, 12 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for workload

Word History

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of workload was in 1899

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Cite this Entry

“Workload.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/workload. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

1
: the amount of work or of working time expected or assigned
students with a heavy workload
2
: the amount of work performed or capable of being performed usually within a specific period
a machine's workload

More from Merriam-Webster on workload

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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