The word 上衣 is formed by combining two characters: 上 (shàng), meaning "upper" or "above", and 衣 (yī), meaning "clothing" or "garment". It is a straightforward, conceptual compound where the first character descriptively modifies the second, directly specifying the type of clothing as that which is worn on the upper part of the body, thus creating the meaning "upper garment" or "jacket".