働

音読おんよみ: ドウ

訓読くんよみ: はたらく

画数かくすう: 13

部首ぶしゅ: 亻（にんべん）

Meaning

Work / Labor / Action

  • Basic forms
  • 働く — to work / base form
  • 働きます — polite / I work / masu form
  • 働いた — past / worked / ta form
  • 働いて — te-form / work (and …) / linking or request
  • 働かない — negative / don’t work / negative form
  • 働けば — if (I) work / conditional
  • 働け — work! / imperative
  • Other common forms
  • 働きたい — want to work / 〜たい form
  • 働ける — can work / be able to work / potential
  • 働かなかった — didn’t work / past negative
  • More
  • 働こう — let’s work / 〜よう form
  • 働いている — working / employed / progressive / state

働く (はたらく) is a godan (う-verb) meaning “to work” or “to labor.” It’s commonly used for people working at jobs, e.g., 会社で働く (“to work at a company”). It follows regular godan conjugation: く → いて / いた → 働いて, 働いた.

  • 働はたらく — to work
  • 労働ろうどう — labor
  • 共働ともばたらき — dual income / both spouses working
  • 働はたらき者もの — hard worker
  • 自動労働じどうろうどう — automated labor
  • 稼働かどう — operation / working (of a machine or system)

The radical 亻 (person) combined with 動 (move) shows a person in motion — a clear metaphor for labor or effort. This kanji emphasizes activity driven by human energy, whether physical work, business, or mental tasks.

父ちちは 会社かいしゃで働はたらいています。
My father works at a company.

共働ともばたらきの家庭かていが増ふえています。
More families now have both parents working.

機械きかいが 自動じどうで働はたらいています。
The machine is working automatically.

動
Creates
労働ろうどう — labor
◀︎ Sayings+ ▶︎