息息相关
xíxíxiāngguān · HSK 7
be closely linked
🫁 息 = breath, 相关 = related: two things so linked they share every breath
息 means breath, 相关 means connected. Doubling 息息 stresses constant link: each breath of one ties to the other, so they rise and fall together — closely bound up.
关 — door 门 + simplified 关 inside
关 is the simplified form of 關. The traditional character showed a gate (門) with a bolt or crossbar inside, depicting a barred door — hence 'to close' or 'shut'. Meaning later extended to 'pass' (a guarded gate), 'barrier', and figuratively 'concern' or 'connection'.