The word 呼风唤雨 is formed by combining two verb-object phrases: 呼风 (call wind) and 唤雨 (summon rain). Each character contributes directly to the literal meaning: 呼 means 'to call,' 风 means 'wind,' 唤 means 'to summon,' and 雨 means 'rain.' These phrases are juxtaposed in parallel structure to create a compound idiom with the combined literal sense of calling forth wind and rain.