The word 面孔 is formed by combining two characters: 面, which originally meant "face" or "surface", and 孔, which means "hole" or "opening". It is a conceptual compound where 孔 does not refer to a literal hole but instead evokes the features of the face, the eyes, nostrils, and mouth, which are its prominent openings. Thus, the term poetically constructs the idea of a "face" as the plane or surface (面) containing these essential apertures (孔), merging into a single image representing the human countenance.