公众
gōngzhòng · HSK 6
the public
👥 公众 = public/communal + crowd
公 means public or communal (shared by all), and 众 means crowd or multitude — three 人 (person) stacked together. Together they form the public, the masses — the shared crowd of people.
公 — eight 八 + private 厶
Originally an ideograph showing 八 (to divide) over 厶 (private/self), depicting the act of splitting away from selfish interest. The combination came to mean 'public' or 'fair,' the opposite of private. It later extended to senses like 'duke,' 'lord,' and 'grandfather.'