The word 邻居 (línjū) is formed by combining two meaningful characters that visually and conceptually synthesize the idea. The first character, 邻 (lín), means "adjacent" or "nearby", depicting the spatial relationship. The second character, 居 (jū), means "to reside" or "dwelling", representing the action or state of living. When placed together, they create a compound where the first part modifies the second: an "adjacent resident" or "one who dwells nearby", which directly and logically yields the meaning of "neighbor".