The word "活活" is formed through the reduplication of the single character "活", which on its own can function as a verb meaning "to live" or an adjective meaning "alive". This process of repeating the identical character creates a new lexical item that operates as an adverb, used to intensify or emphasize the manner of an action, often conveying a sense of vividness or thoroughness, as in "活活打死" meaning "beaten to death".