The word 夜晚 is formed by combining two characters that each independently relate to the concept of night, creating a reinforced and nuanced meaning. 夜 (yè) is a pictographic character originally depicting the moon and stars, directly meaning "night". 晚 (wǎn) conveys "evening" or "late", suggesting the deepening or latter part of the night. Their combination is not merely additive but conceptual, merging the general time period (夜) with a sense of its progressed, darkened state (晚) to evoke the complete and quiet expanse of nighttime.