The kind of work prohibited on Shabbos is called melacha, meaning creative labor. There are 39 melachos: ploughing, sowing, reaping, binding sheaves, threshing, winnowing, selecting, sifting, grinding, kneading, baking/cooking, shearing, whitening/bleaching, combing, dyeing, spinning, threading the warp of a loom, threading the heddles of a loom, weaving, separating into threads, tying a knot, untying a knot, sewing, tearing, trapping, slaughtering, skinning, tanning, smoothing, scoring, cutting, writing, erasing, building, demolishing, kindling a fire, extinguishing, completing an object, and transporting an object between domains (or through a public domain). These are the labors that were necessary for the construction of the Mishkan (Tabernacle) and they demonstrate man’s mastery. (“Melacha” shares the same root as the word “melech,” meaning a king. The other word for labor is “avodah,” sharing the same root as “eved,” a servant.)
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