The Chinese word 改革 (gǎigé, meaning "reform") is a compound term formed by combining two semantically related characters: 改 (gǎi), which means "to change" or "to alter", and 革 (gé), which originally meant "animal hide" but, by extension, took on the meaning "to remove" or "to transform". Historically, 革 implies a more fundamental or even forceful stripping away of the old, akin to removing skin. Therefore, when combined, 改革 conveys the concept of systematic change through both alteration (改) and the elimination or transformation (革) of existing structures, typically in a social, political, or institutional context, to bring about improvement or renewal.