Explore 労 in words about work, effort and fatigue. Learn each reading in a complete word.
The idea
労 has 7 strokes and is read ろう in 労働（ろうどう）, 労力（ろうりょく）, 疲労（ひろう） and 苦労（くろう）. Follow the linked stroke-order diagram.
Examples
- 労働者は労働時間について話し合いました。The workers discussed their working hours.
- この作業には多くの労力がかかります。This task takes a lot of effort.
- 疲労がたまったので、今日は休みます。Fatigue has built up, so I will rest today.
- 彼女は子どもを育てるのに苦労しました。She had a hard time raising her children.
- 法律は労働者を守ります。The law protects workers.
- いつもご苦労をおかけします。I am always causing you trouble.
Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.
No Japanese device voice is available. You can still read the text and use the linked listening resources.
Watch out
労働 means labour, while 苦労 describes hardship or difficulty. 労力 is effort; 疲労 is fatigue. Do not assume they are interchangeable.
Try it yourself
Write the reading of 労働 in hiragana.
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ろうどう
労働 is ろうどう: it refers to labour or work.
Write the reading of 苦労 in hiragana.
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くろう
苦労 is くろう: it describes hardship or difficulty.
Choose the missing kanji: 疲＿（ひろう）［労／力］.
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労
労 completes 疲労（ひろう）, meaning fatigue; 力 would not form this word.
Practice round
Answer questions, then rebuild Japanese sentences where available. We keep your score.
Write the reading of 労働 in hiragana.
Write the reading of 苦労 in hiragana.
Choose the missing kanji: 疲＿（ひろう）［労／力］.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
Tap the words in the right order.
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Write 労 using the diagram, then cover the readings and make a sentence with 苦労.