Manpower

'mænˌpaʊər

nounmediumCommonGeneral

Definitions

1

The number of people available to work or to perform a particular task or service.

'mænˌpaʊər

nounneutralmedium
General

The number of people available for work or service.

The factory needs extra manpower to meet the increased demand.

💡 Simply: Manpower is like the team you need to get a job done. Imagine you need a lot of people to build a house – that's manpower!

👶 For kids: Manpower means how many people are needed to do a job.

More Examples

2

Recruiting sufficient manpower is a major challenge for the construction company.

3

The military's success depended on its available manpower and resources.

How It's Used

Military

"The army needs more manpower to effectively secure the border."

Business

"The company is investing in more manpower to increase production."

Construction

"The project requires significant manpower to complete on time."

From Middle English *man* (human being) + *power* (strength, ability). Originally referring to the physical strength or capabilities of a man.

Used since the 17th century, often in contexts of military organization, and later extended to business and industry.

Memory tip

Think of the *power* of *man* - it's about the labor force.

Word Origin

Root: man + power

man powerman-power

Usage

40%Spoken
60%Written