The Chinese word **绵羊** (miányáng), meaning "sheep," is a compound noun formed through semantic combination, where the first character **绵** (mián) conveys the meaning of "soft" or "continuous" (evoking the idea of soft wool), and the second character **羊** (yáng) is the generic root meaning "sheep" or "goat." Together, they create a specific term that distinguishes the soft-wooled domesticated sheep from other caprids, illustrating a common Chinese word-formation strategy where a descriptive modifier is placed before a general category to specify a particular subtype.