家屋
かおく · kaoku · JLPT N2 · noun
house
🏠 家 (ka) = home + 屋 (oku) = dwelling: a home-dwelling is a house
家 means home or family, and 屋 means dwelling, shop, or roof. Joined as 家屋, they name a building that serves as a home. Use it for houses in general.
家 — roof 宀 + pig 豕
Originally a pictograph of a pig under a roof, since domesticated pigs were kept in or under the home in ancient China. Over time the meaning broadened from 'household' to 'family,' and by extension 'home' or a specialist (as in 专家, 'expert').
屋 — corpse 尸 + reach/arrive 至
屋 originally depicted a place where one arrives (至) to rest under a roof, with 尸 here representing a covering or dwelling rather than a corpse. The character came to mean 'house' or 'room'. Today it commonly refers to a house or a room within a building.