The word 领先 is formed through the direct and intuitive combination of two conceptual images: the character 领, which depicts the neck/collar and carries the idea of "leading" or "guiding from the front", is placed before 先, which represents a person (儿) above legs (之) and conveys the meaning of "first" or "ahead". The formation is not merely additive but creates a unified, dynamic concept: the act of leading (领) someone or something into the state of being ahead (先), thus pictorially and conceptually fusing into the meaning "to be in the lead" or "to take the forefront".