工 Radical 48 — work, labour; a craftsman; a carpenter’s square
gōng (first tone, high and level)
work, labour; a craftsman; a carpenter’s square
Radical 483 strokes0 characters
Where the shape comes from
A carpenter’s tool — most often read as a set square or a plumb line, the instrument by which a workman keeps his angles true. The tool stood for the trade, then for the work itself and the person who does it: 工作, 工人, 工厂. As a component it holds up 左 and 巧, and it lends its sound to 功, 红 and 江.
characters filed under 工
No published character on HSK Guide is filed under this radical yet. Character explorer.