团员
tuányuán · HSK 7
member (of delegation/organization/etc.)
👥 团 (group) + 员 (member) = a member of a group
团 is a group, league, or delegation; 员 marks a person filling a role (same 员 as in 演员 actor, 店员 shop clerk). Put together: the person who belongs to the group — a member.
团 — enclosure 囗 + 才 (phonetic/abbreviated 專)
Originally written 團, showing an enclosure 囗 around 專 (a spindle) suggesting something wound into a round shape. The character came to mean 'round,' 'lump,' or 'group.' The simplified form 团 keeps the enclosure 囗 but replaces the inner element with 才 for ease of writing.
员 — mouth 口 + shell/money 贝 (貝)
Originally a pictograph of a round bronze tripod vessel, with 口 depicting its round opening and 鼎 (later simplified to 貝/贝) showing the vessel itself. The original sense was 'round,' now written 圓/圆. It was borrowed to mean 'member' or 'person in a role,' which became its main modern meaning.