洗濯
せんたく · sentaku · JLPT N5 · noun
wash
🧺👕 洗濯 = wash (洗) + rinse (濯): two water-radical kanji for laundry
Both kanji carry the three-drop water radical 氵 on the left, so the word is water twice over. 洗 (sen) means wash, as in 洗う arau; 濯 (taku) means rinse. A 洗濯機 sentakuki is a washing machine: wash + rinse + machine.
洗 — water radical 氵 + 先 (xiān)
A semantic-phonetic compound. The water radical 氵 indicates the meaning (washing with water), while 先 supplies the sound, originally close to xiǎn/xǐ. The character has long meant 'to wash' or 'rinse,' and by extension 'to cleanse' or 'wash away.'