The kanji 稼 fundamentally means to "earn," "make," "work," or "gain" something, typically through labor, effort, or activity, especially in the context of earning money or a living. It implies the process of acquiring something, usually by working. It can refer to making a living, earning a salary, or bringing in income. It is very closely related to the concept of earning money.

・On-yomi (音読み): カ (ka) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): かせ稼ぐ (kasegu)

⚫︎ 稼稼業 Translation: Occupation; business; industry ⚫︎ 稼稼働時間 Translation: Working hours ⚫︎ 日銭を稼稼ぐ Translation: To earn money daily; to make a daily living

The kanji 稼 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字). ⚫︎ The semantic (meaning) component is 禾 (koku) which represents "grain" or "crops." ⚫︎ The phonetic (sound) component is 家 (ka), which means "house" or "home." ⚫︎ The original meaning of the character was likely related to the work involved in farming to obtain crops, emphasizing the labor required to gather the harvest and thus earn a living. Over time, the meaning expanded to encompass the broader concept of earning and making money through any kind of work or activity.