The word 豺狼 is formed by combining two characters: 豺, which consists of the semantic radical 豸 (denoting beast) and the phonetic component 才, and 狼, which consists of the semantic radical 犭 (a variant of 犬, meaning dog) and the phonetic component 良. Each character independently refers to a predatory canine, and their conjunction creates a compound word meaning jackals and wolves.