Definition

1. Noun:
   • A person who is given all the unpleasant, menial, or boring tasks that others avoid: A "dogsbody" is someone, typically in a workplace or organization, who is assigned the least desirable jobs. The term implies a low-status position with little autonomy or respect.

Usage

• The word "dogsbody" is used as a countable noun. It is informal and often carries a slightly negative or sympathetic connotation, describing a person's role rather than their inherent qualities.
• It is commonly used in British English but is understood in other varieties of English.

Examples

• Noun:
  • As the new intern, I was the office dogsbody, making coffee and photocopying documents all day.
  • He felt like a mere dogsbody, running errands for everyone in the department.

Advanced Usage

• "to be/act as a dogsbody": To perform the role of someone who does all the menial work.
  • For the first year, she had to act as a dogsbody before being given any real responsibility.
• "dogsbody duties/tasks/work": Refers specifically to the kind of unpleasant or boring jobs assigned.
  • His day was filled with the usual dogsbody duties: filing, data entry, and cleaning the break room.

Variants and Related Words

• Gofer (n, informal): A person who runs errands and does minor tasks, similar to a dogsbody but sometimes with a slightly less negative connotation.
  • He started as a gofer on the film set.
• Factotum (n, formal): A person employed to do all kinds of work. This is a more formal term that can encompass a dogsbody's duties but can also imply a wider range of responsibilities.
  • He served as the manager's factotum.

Synonyms

• Menial: A person with a boring, low-status job (often used as an adjective: ).
• Drudge: A person who does hard, menial, or dull work.
• Underling: A subordinate, often one who is given unimportant tasks.

Related Phrases

• To be given/landed with all the donkey work: An idiom meaning to be assigned all the hard, boring tasks. This is conceptually very close to the role of a dogsbody.
  • As usual, I was landed with all the donkey work.
• The lowest person on the totem pole: An idiom describing the person with the least seniority or status in a group, often tasked with undesirable work.
  • As the new hire, you're the lowest person on the totem pole.

Noun

1. a worker who has to do all the unpleasant or boring jobs that no one else wants to do