执行
zhíxíng · HSK 5
carry out
▶️ 执 = grasp/hold + 行 = go/do — grasp and go: carry out
执 means to hold or grasp (think 'execute a plan, hold to it'); 行 means to walk or do. Together: take hold of a task and walk it through. Same 执 as in 执照 (license) and 行 as in 行动 (action).
行 — crossroads pictograph (left 彳 + right 亍)
行 originally pictured a four-way crossroads in oracle bone script, with two paths meeting. From 'road' it extended to 'walk, go, travel,' and then to 'a row, line' or 'business firm' (read háng). The two halves 彳 and 亍 are the split sides of that ancient crossroads.