Answer
The word “work” can be used casually to mean that mechanical energy was expended by people or animals, which is similar to its usage in physics. However, in everyday language, “work” can involve mental energy, or physical effort that may not have resulted in an object being displaced, and from a physics point of view, the work is zero.
Work Step by Step
For example, “It was really hard work pulling that sled uphill all day long” is close to the usage in physics. An example of the more conversational usage would be “working on a crossword puzzle”, or someone who “did a lot of work standing there holding that bag of rice for half an hour”.