‘劳累’ is an adjective meaning 'exhausted from physical or mental work.' It combines two characters: 劳 (láo), meaning 'to toil' or 'labor,' and 累 (lèi), meaning 'tired' or 'fatigued.' Together, they emphasize exhaustion resulting specifically from sustained effort—not general tiredness (e.g., from lack of sleep) but weariness caused by demanding tasks, long hours, or heavy responsibilities. It’s commonly used to describe how someone feels after hard work, caregiving, studying, or overtime.

The word carries a tone of sympathy or concern and often appears in health-related contexts, advice, or empathetic statements. While it can function as a predicate adjective ('他很劳累'), it frequently appears in compound structures like 劳累过度 (overworked) or 身体劳累 (physically exhausted). It is not used for temporary or mild fatigue—words like 累 (lèi) alone or 困 (tired/sleepy) are more appropriate for those cases.