The word "下任" is formed through a standard Chinese compounding process where the character "下" (xià), meaning "next" or "below," modifies the character "任" (rèn), which means "term of office" or "appointment." Together, they create a noun that literally means "the next term" or "the following appointment," and by extension refers to "the next person to hold a position" or "the succeeding office-holder." This formation follows a modifier-head structure, typical in Chinese, where the first element specifies the temporal or sequential quality of the second, core element.