arbetare

Suffix of arbeta (“work”) +‎ -are (“-er”), inherited from Old Swedish arbeidare. First attested in the 15th century. Cognate with Danish arbejder, Dutch arbeider and German Arbeiter.

Insect sense; attested since 1860.

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arbetare c

1. a worker; one who does work, often as part of an employment.
2. a blue-collar worker; someone who perform manual labour

   Antonym: tjänsteman (“white collar worker”)

3. (strongly dated, uncountable) A collective term for all employees in a society. (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:)
4. (entomology) a worker

   Coordinate terms: drottning (“queen”), soldat (“soldier”)

• arbetare in Svensk ordbok (SO)
• arbetare in Svenska Akademiens ordlista (SAOL)