The Chinese word 化合物 (huàhéwù), meaning "chemical compound", is a classic example of a modifier-head compound word formed through semantic combination. It is constructed from the root 化 (huà), which means "to change" or "chemistry", acting as a modifier for the core concept 合物 (héwù), meaning "combined thing" or "substance". Literally, it translates to "a thing combined through chemical change". This formation follows the common Chinese grammatical pattern where the first element (化) specifies the type or method of the second (合物), precisely and logically encapsulating the scientific concept of a substance formed by the chemical combination of two or more elements.