The Chinese word "生命" (shēngmìng), meaning "life", is formed through the semantic fusion of two individual characters: "生", which originally depicts a plant sprouting from the earth and conveys core ideas of birth, growth, and vitality, and "命", which historically relates to commands or decrees and extends to concepts of destiny and allotted lifespan. By combining these characters, the word conceptually integrates the dynamic process of being born and living ("生") with the inherent boundness or essence of existence ("命"), thereby coalescing into a holistic term that encapsulates the full spectrum of life from its inception to its sustained being. This formation exemplifies how classical Chinese compounds often merge complementary meanings to create abstract nouns with deepened conceptual scope.