The word 体育 is formed by combining two characters: 体 (tǐ), which means "body", and 育 (yù), which means "to nurture" or "to educate". Conceptually, it directly fuses the idea of "body" with the idea of "cultivation", creating the composite meaning of "nurturing the body". This logically extends to the modern concept of physical training, education, and athletics, representing the holistic development of the physical self.