The word 肿瘤 (zhǒngliú, "tumor") is formed by combining two characters that each visually and conceptually depict the condition. The first character, 肿 (zhǒng), means "swelling" or "to swell", and itself depicts a physical bulge or abnormality (represented by the "mound" component 中) related to the body or illness (shown by the "sickness" radical 疒). The second, 瘤 (liú), specifically means "lump" or "mass", and reinforces the idea of a pathological, lingering growth (the component 留 implies "to remain") within the body (again using the sickness radical 疒). Together, they create a compound image of a persistent, swollen mass of bodily tissue, directly illustrating the disease's physical form.