The word 牛仔 is formed by combining two characters: 牛 (niú), meaning "cow" or "ox", and 仔 (zǎi), a colloquial term for a "young person" or "small thing". It literally translates to "cow young-one" or "cow kid", which conceptually evokes the image of a person who works with cattle. This direct, image-based construction, where the core element (cow) is modified by a term suggesting a person associated with it, naturally leads to its meaning of "cowboy". The term was later borrowed to describe denim "jeans" (牛仔褲), extending the association from the person to their iconic clothing.