The word "小瞧" is formed by combining the character "小" (xiǎo), meaning "small" or "little", with the character "瞧" (qiáo), meaning "to look at". In this compound, "小" modifies "瞧" adverbially, conveying the act of looking at something with a sense of diminution or disrespect, resulting in the meaning "to look down on" or "to underestimate". The formation directly stems from the literal meanings of the two characters.