The word "卫生部" is formed by combining the character 卫 (wèi), meaning "guard" or "protect", with 生 (shēng), meaning "life" or "health", to create the compound 卫生 (wèishēng), which conveys "hygiene" or "health". The character 部 (bù), meaning "ministry" or "department", is then appended to indicate an administrative organization, resulting in the term for "Ministry of Health".