打工 (dǎ gōng) — to work a part-time or temporary job (especiall…

Definition

打工 means working a part-time or temporary job — usually while studying. It's lighter and less permanent than 工作 ('work / job' in general).

verb

to work a part-time or temporary job (especially for students)

。
Tā shǔ jià dǎ le yí fèn gōng.
He worked a part-time job during summer vacation.
打工。
Hěn duō tóng xué dōu qù dǎ gōng.
Many classmates go to work part-time.
打工。
Tā dǎ gōng zhuàn qián jiāo xué fèi.
He works part-time to earn money for tuition.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

动宾dòngbīnVerb + object

An action followed by what it acts on, fused into one word.

打dǎdo or make

工gōngwork or job

The first part means do or make, and the second means work or job; together they mean to take on temporary work.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

扌丁打

Meaning part形符xíngfú

扌Written in full as手shǒuhand

Sound part声符shēngfú

丁

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

打 uses 扌, a hand, to show an action done with the hand, and 丁 to give the sound.

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

The shape of 工 is a picture of a bladed tool used to plow ground or mark a border; some read it as a carpenter's square.

Appears in