The kanji 労 primarily conveys the meanings of "labor," "toil," "effort," "trouble," and "toil and hardship." It encapsulates the idea of physical or mental exertion, the work one puts in, and the difficulties associated with it.

・On-yomi (音読み): 　・ロウ (rō) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): 　・ろう (rō) (generally used as a word itself, such as in 労 work or labor) 　・いたわ（る） (itawa(ru)): to sympathize with; to care for; to console

⚫︎労働 (rōdō) Translation: labor; work ⚫︎疲労 (hirō) Translation: fatigue; exhaustion ⚫︎苦労 (kurō) Translation: hardship; trouble; suffering

The kanji 労 is a pictophonetic compound. The left side is 力 (chikara), meaning "power" or "strength", which is a radical that indicates meaning. The right side is 㚔 (rō), which is the phonetic component, indicating the sound. The overall meaning combines the idea of exertion or effort 力 with the phonetic component. The image of physical exertion, using one's strength, is implied, originally referring to agricultural labor.