The word 极限 is formed by combining two characters: 极 (jí), meaning "utmost" or "extreme", and 限 (xiàn), meaning "limit" or "boundary". Together, they create a conceptual compound where 极 intensifies the nature of the boundary implied by 限, resulting in a meaning that denotes the "utmost limit", the farthest possible point or extreme boundary of something, whether in a physical, mathematical, or metaphorical sense.