The Chinese word "希拉里" (Xīlālǐ) is a phonetically constructed transliteration specifically created to represent the sound of the English name "Hillary." It is formed using individual Chinese characters chosen not for their literal meanings but for how closely their pronunciations (when spoken in Mandarin) approximate the syllables of the source name: "希" (xī) for "Hi-", "拉" (lā) for "-la-", and "里" (lǐ) for "-ry." This is a standard practice in Chinese for adapting foreign proper nouns, where the primary goal is auditory resemblance, though the characters—often selected from a common pool for transliteration—can carry incidental positive connotations (like "hope" for 希 or "village" for 里).