The Chinese word 倒塌 (dǎotā), meaning "to collapse", is a compound formed by combining two characters with closely related meanings to create a more specific and emphatic term. The first character, 倒 (dǎo), primarily means "to fall" or "to topple over", while the second, 塌 (tā), means "to cave in", "to collapse", or "to sink". Together in a coordinative (or synonymous) compound structure, they reinforce and specify each other, moving from the general action of falling to the more catastrophic and complete event of a structure giving way and crumbling down, thus vividly depicting a total collapse.