The Chinese word **劳工** (láogōng) is a compound noun formed by combining two meaningful characters: **劳** (láo), which means "labor" or "toil," and **工** (gōng), which means "worker" or "work." Together, they create a term that explicitly denotes a "laborer" or "manual worker," where the first character describes the nature of the activity and the second specifies the person who performs it. This pattern of combining a modifier with a generic category is common in Chinese word formation, resulting in a precise and efficient term for a person engaged in physical or industrial labor.