The word "跟着" is formed by combining the character 跟, which pictographically and conceptually means "heel" and by extension "to follow closely" (as if stepping on someone's heels), with the character 着, a grammatical particle that, when attached to a verb, indicates a continuous or sustained state of action. Thus, the formation literally joins the core action of "following at the heels" with the aspect of "being in an ongoing state", creating the sense of "following along" in a continuous manner.