升级
shēngjí · HSK 6
upgrade
⬆️ 升 = rise/ascend + 级 = level/grade — rising a level
升 means to rise or ascend, 级 means level, rank, or step. Together they literally mean rising in level — an upgrade, promotion, or escalation. Think of climbing stairs: each 级 is a step, and 升 is the act of going up.
升 — ladle/scoop pictograph (related to 斗)
升 originally pictured a ladle or dipper used to measure grain, closely related to 斗 (a larger dipper). It came to denote a unit of dry measure (a 'sheng', about a liter). From 'scooping up' it extended to the meaning 'rise, ascend'.
级 — silk radical 纟 + 及 jí (phonetic)
级 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The silk radical 纟 originally referred to threads or the steps/ranks of silk cords used to mark official grades. The right side 及 (jí) supplies the sound. Over time the meaning shifted from 'cord-marked rank' to general 'level, grade, class.'