开垦
kāi kěn · HSK 7
to clear a wild area for cultivation
🚜🌱 开垦 = 开 open + 垦 cultivate-land = open up wild ground for farming
开 means to open, 垦 means to till or reclaim soil; together they mean breaking open untamed land to put it under the plow. The 土 (earth) part sits under 垦, a hint that this verb is all about working the ground.
开 — two hands 廾 + door 门 (open gate)
Originally written 開, showing two hands (廾) lifting the bar (一) off a gate (門) to open it. The simplified form 开 keeps the two-hands element and drops the gate. Core meaning 'to open' extended to 'start, operate, bloom'.