also: えだち
noun
Literary or historical term for a military campaign or battle. Not used for modern warfare in everyday speech; 戦争 or 戦い are the usual words.
彼は数々の役に参加した古強者だった。
He was a veteran who took part in many campaigns.
この地は古くから役の舞台となった。
This land has been the stage for battles since ancient times.
noun
unpaid labor; forced labor
Only with reading えだち
Archaic term for compulsory labor under the ritsuryō system. Read as えだち in this sense.
律令制下では、民に役が課せられた。
Under the ritsuryō system, forced labor was imposed on the people.
Standard modern word for 'war'; 役 is a literary or historical term for a campaign or battle.
Common word for 'battle' or 'fight'; 役 is more formal and limited to historical contexts.
The kanji 役 originally meant 'service' or 'duty'. The reading えき is the Sino-Japanese on'yomi, while えだち is a native Japanese reading used in the archaic forced-labor sense. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.