土ど方かた

also: つちかた

ど

か

た

Freq.FrequencyTop 20,000

Meanings

noun

construction worker; laborer; navvy

sensitive

Refers to a manual laborer, especially in construction or civil engineering. The term can carry a somewhat rough or old-fashioned nuance, and is sometimes considered sensitive or derogatory; more neutral alternatives include 建設作業員 or 土木作業員.

彼かれは若わかい頃ころ、土ど方かたとして働はたらいていた。
When he was young, he worked as a construction laborer.
この現げん場ばには多おおくの土ど方かたが必ひつ要ようだ。
This site needs many laborers.

See all 13 example sentences ›

Usage patterns

〈人ひと〉が土ど方かたをするfor someone to work as a construction laborer
彼かれは若わかい頃ころ、土ど方かたをしていた。
He worked as a construction laborer when he was young.
土ど方かたとして働はたらくto work as a construction laborer
彼かれは土ど方かたとして働はたらいている。
He works as a construction laborer.

Kanji

土soil, earth, ground
方direction, person, alternative

Related words

労ろう働どう者しゃN1
労働者 is a neutral, formal term for a worker in general, while 土方 specifically denotes a manual construction laborer and can sound rough or derogatory.
作さ業ぎょう員いん
作業員 is a polite, neutral word for a worker on a job site, whereas 土方 is an older, sometimes disparaging term for the same kind of laborer.
人にん夫ぷ
人夫 is an older, similarly plain term for a manual laborer, close in register to 土方 but slightly less commonly viewed as offensive.

Counted with

人にん
counter for people

Word family

ＩＴ土方あいてぃーどかた
lowly IT worker; overworked and underpaid IT professional
土ど方かた焼やけ
farmer's tan; construction worker's tan

Built from

土ど+方かた

Written forms

土方Usage99%
- どかた
  Standard kanji spelling for the common reading どかた.
- つちかた
  Rare reading; the same kanji is almost always read どかた in modern Japanese.
ドカタUsage1%
つちかた

Etymology

Compound of 土 (earth, soil) and 方 (person, direction). The reading どかた is a kun'yomi compound; the exact historical derivation is uncertain, but it has long referred to manual laborers working with earth and construction.