The Chinese word 守则 (shǒuzé), meaning "rules" or "code of conduct", is a compound noun formed through semantic combination. It consists of the character 守 (shǒu), which means "to guard", "to defend", or "to abide by", and the character 则 (zé), which means "rule", "regulation", or "standard". Together, they create a modifier-head structure where 守 ("to abide by") modifies 则 ("rules"), effectively meaning "rules that one should abide by" or "guiding principles". This formation is typical in Chinese, where two meaningful characters (morphemes) are combined to produce a new, specific term with a composite meaning that is logical and often transparent to native speakers.