1. a public institution where poor people were housed and given work in exchange for food and shelter
Usage: historical; primarily British
2. a place where hard physical work is done

Examples

• The Victorian workhouse was a harsh place for the destitute.
• Many families feared being sent to the workhouse during hard times.
• Charles Dickens wrote about the terrible conditions in workhouses.
• The old workhouse building was converted into apartments.
• The factory served as a workhouse for immigrant laborers.
• Life in the workhouse meant long hours of difficult labor.
• The workhouse system was designed to discourage dependency on public aid.