The Chinese word **尘土** (chéntǔ, meaning "dust") is formed through semantic compounding, where two characters with related meanings combine to create a more specific concept. The first character, **尘** (chén), is itself an ideogrammic compound (会意字 / huìyìzì) composed of **小** (xiǎo, "small") over **土** (tǔ, "soil"), pictographically representing "tiny particles of earth." When paired with the second character, **土** (tǔ, "soil" or "earth"), the compound **尘土** reinforces and specifies the meaning, resulting in a word that vividly denotes "fine, dry soil particles" or "dust," effectively doubling down on the earthy, particulate nature of the substance.