The word 触及 (chùjí) is formed through the combination of two individual characters: 触 (chù), meaning "to touch" or "to contact," and 及 (jí), meaning "to reach" or "to attain." Together, they create a compound verb where the meaning of the first character (touching) is extended and completed by the second (reaching), resulting in the metaphorical sense of "to touch upon," "to involve," or "to reach (a topic or depth)." This follows a common Chinese lexical pattern where two synonymous or semantically related verbs are paired to form a single, often more abstract or figurative, concept, as in this case where physical contact evolves into an idea of making intellectual or emotional contact with a subject. For example, 触及本质 means "to get to the essence" of something.