从未
cóngwèi · HSK 7
never
🚫 cóng = from, wèi = not yet — from-not-yet = never
Think of it as tracing back through all time (从 = from/follow) and finding nothing yet (未 = not yet). From start to now, it has not-yet happened — never.
从 — two 人 (person) figures, one following the other
从 is a pictographic compound showing one person walking behind another, vividly depicting the act of following. The original meaning 'to follow' was extended to 'from' (the starting point one follows out of) and 'to obey'. The traditional form 從 added 辵 (movement) and 止 (foot) to reinforce the walking sense.
未 — tree 木 with extra short top stroke
未 originally pictured a tree with luxuriant new branches at the top, suggesting tender shoots not yet matured. From this 'not yet ripe' image it came to mean 'not yet' or 'have not.' It is also the 8th Earthly Branch, used in the traditional sexagenary cycle.