The Chinese word **恶臭 (èchòu)** is formed through the combination of two distinct characters: **恶 (è)**, meaning "bad," "evil," or "fierce," and **臭 (chòu)**, meaning "smelly" or "foul odor." It is a **modifier-noun compound**, where the first character **恶** acts as an intensifying adjective that modifies the second character **臭**, specifying the type of smell as not just any odor, but a particularly **bad, offensive, or putrid stench**. This standard method of word formation in Chinese creates a precise and vivid term by semantically combining descriptive elements.