The word 盛典 is formed by combining the character 盛, which means "grand" or "flourishing" and is itself composed of the radical 皿 (dish) and the component 成 primarily for phonetic indication, with the character 典, meaning "ceremony" or "standard", constructed from the radical 册 (book) and the component 丌. In this compound, 盛 modifies 典 to specify a "grand ceremony" or "magnificent event".