The Chinese word **阻塞** (zǔsè) is a compound word formed through the morphological process of **co-ordination** or **combination of synonyms**, where two independent characters with similar meanings are joined to create a single, more precise or emphatic term. The first character, **阻** (zǔ), inherently means "to obstruct," "to hinder," or "to block," while the second, **塞** (sè/sāi), carries the core meaning of "to stop up," "to clog," or "to fill a gap." By combining them, the word reinforces and specifies the concept of a complete blockage or obstruction, often used in both literal contexts (like a blocked pipe or traffic jam) and metaphorical ones (like a bottleneck or impediment), resulting in a meaning stronger than either character alone.