The Chinese word 洪水 (hóngshuǐ), meaning "flood", is a compound formed through semantic combination. The first character, 洪 (hóng), originally depicted vast, swirling waters and carries the core meaning of "vast" or "great", specifically in relation to water. The second character, 水 (shuǐ), is the fundamental pictograph for "water". When combined, 洪 acts as an attributive modifier describing the scale and intensity, while 水 specifies the substance; thus, the compound literally means "great/vast water", succinctly conveying the concept of an overwhelming inundation or flood.