The Chinese word **裁员 (cáiyuán)**, meaning "to lay off (staff)," is a compound word formed through a straightforward semantic combination. It consists of two characters: **裁 (cái)**, which means "to cut" or "to reduce," and **员 (yuán)**, which means "personnel" or "staff member." Together, they create a literal meaning of "to cut staff," which is a direct and metaphorical description of the action, reflecting a common pattern in Chinese where a verb-object structure is condensed into a single term to express a specific action or concept.