The word 痲痹 is constructed from two characters sharing the sickness radical 疒. 痲 incorporates 麻 for phonetic similarity to 'má' and semantic association with numbness, while 痹 incorporates 畀 for phonetic resemblance to 'bì' and semantic connection to paralysis. Their combination yields a term meaning paralysis or numbness, directly reflecting the compounded meanings of its components.