人工

• Pinyin: rén gōng
• Hanzi breakdown: 人 = pictograph of a standing person; 工 = pictograph of a carpenter's tool, meaning work or craft

Meaning

Artificial; manual labor. Describes things made or done by humans rather than by nature or machines.

As a noun, 人工 refers to human labor or manpower. As an adjective, it means man-made or artificial, as in 人工智能 (artificial intelligence) or 人工湖 (man-made lake). Very common in modern discussions about technology and manufacturing.

Examples

1. 人工智能已经改变了我们的生活。 Artificial intelligence has already changed our lives.
2. 这个湖是人工的，不是天然的。 This lake is man-made, not natural.
3. 这件产品是人工制作的，不是机器生产的。 This product is handmade, not machine-produced.

Usage Guide

Context: technology, work, everyday

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 人工智能的发展速度越来越快。(The development of artificial intelligence is getting faster and faster.)
• 这个花园里有一个人工瀑布。(There is a man-made waterfall in this garden.)

Don't Say

• 他是一个人工的人。(Don't use 人工 to describe a person — it only modifies objects or processes. Say 他做事很认真 for a hardworking person)

Origin & History

Compound of 人 (person, human) and 工 (work, craft). Together they mean human work or human-made.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal