The Chinese word 糖浆 (tángjiāng) for "syrup" is a straightforward compound formed by combining two meaningful characters: 糖 (táng), which means "sugar" or "candy", and 浆 (jiāng), which means "thick liquid" or "paste". In this modifier-head structure, common in Chinese word formation, the first character 糖 acts as a descriptive modifier specifying the type of thick liquid, while the second character 浆 serves as the core noun indicating the category of substance. Thus, the term literally and logically translates to "sugar-thick-liquid", effectively capturing the essence of the viscous, sugary substance. This transparent compounding method is a fundamental feature of the Chinese language, where new words are often created by combining existing, meaningful morphemes.