The word **收敛 (shōuliǎn)** is formed through the combination of two semantically related characters: **收 (shōu)**, meaning "to gather in," "to collect," or "to receive," and **敛 (liǎn)**, meaning "to restrain," "to hold back," or "to contract." Together, they create a compound word where the meanings synergize, originally describing the concrete action of drawing things inward or restraining them (e.g., pulling in troops or restraining a smile). Over time, the meaning broadened through metaphorical extension to encompass abstract concepts such as moderating one's behavior, becoming less ostentatious, or, in scientific contexts, describing a sequence or function that approaches a limit. Thus, the formation exemplifies a parallel structure where both components contribute to the core idea of "bringing in and restraining" to yield nuanced modern meanings.