labor of love

English

Alternative forms

• labour of love

Pronunciation

• Audio (General Australian):

  (file)

Noun

labor of love (plural labors of love)

1. (American spelling, idiomatic) A task performed voluntarily without expectation of reimbursement; an altruistic work or undertaking.

   Writing a textbook has become more a labor of love than a money-making enterprise, wrote the professor, because of the peculiar way the books are now marketed.

   • 2021 July 9, Luke Winkie, How a professional dungeon master keeps his games fun‎^[1]:

     It takes a lot of work to be a dungeon master. As the person in charge of a tabletop role-playing game — even informally among friends — you’re responsible for buying all the rulebooks, drawing up the maps, performing all the ancillary characters, and making sure your friends show up on time for each session. It’s a labor of love; a successful Dungeons & Dragons campaign often feels like a second job.

Translations

task performed without expectation of reimbursement

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 义务劳动 (zh), 用爱发电 (zh) (yòng'àifādiàn)

• Danish: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: hyväntekeväisyys (fi)
• German: Liebhaberei (de) f (especially from the perspective of taxation)
• Swedish: kärleksverk n