From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpublic worksˌpublic ˈworks noun [plural] TBPUBLIC/GOVERNMENTbuildings such as hospitals, roads, ports etc that are built and paid for by the government the public works department
Examples from the Corpus
public works• Page was instrumental in the creation of the new Mainan ambitious public works project funded through a public-private partnership.• Instead, proposals have involved moving him to his area of greatest expertise as public works director.• The New Deal showed great ingenuity in designing public works schemes.• They had hoped that he would launch great public works projects, ge! a building boom going.• In 1971 it did so in respect of public works contracts.• Borough Councils with their power to offer public works could, as we have seen, deal only very imperfectly with unemployment.• Most focus on illegal kickbacks on public works contracts.• In Keynes's view, the great imperative was public works.From Longman Business Dictionarypublic worksˌpublic ˈworksPROPERTYECONOMICS the building of something on a large scale, paid for by a governmentHe called for spending on highways and public works to revive the economy. → works 