作業
さぎょう · sagyou · JLPT N3 · noun
work
🛠️ 作業 = make (作) + trade/task (業): making as a task is work
作 means to make or produce, as in 作る (tsukuru, to make). 業 means a line of business or a task, as in 工業 (industry). Together they mean hands-on work or an operation, like 作業員 (sagyouin), a site worker.
作 — person radical 亻 + 乍
作 combines the person radical 亻 with 乍, which originally depicted a sudden action or making something. The character means 'to do, make, or create,' with 亻 indicating human activity and 乍 supplying the sound. Over time it broadened to cover works, deeds, and acting as something.