The word **乒乓球** (pīngpāngqiú), meaning "table tennis," is formed through onomatopoeia and semantic compounding. The reduplicated syllables **乒乓** (pīngpāng) phonetically mimic the distinctive "ping-pong" sound of the ball striking the table and paddle, originally serving as an informal name for the game. This sound-imitative core is then combined with the morpheme **球** (qiú), meaning "ball" or "sphere," to specify the object and, by extension, the sport itself. Thus, the term creatively builds from an auditory impression to a concrete noun, perfectly capturing the essence of the game through both sound and meaning.