The word 汽车 is formed by combining two meaningful characters: 汽, which conveys the concept of "steam" or "vapor" (and by historical association, the powered mechanics of an engine), and 车, which means "vehicle" or "wheeled conveyance". Together, they create a compound that literally reads as "steam vehicle", a term originating when such engines were new, but which has semantically evolved to specifically denote the modern "automobile" or "car", retaining the core idea of a powered, self-moving vehicle.