敬佩
jìng pèi · HSK 7
to admire
🙇 敬佩 = 敬 respect + 佩 admire; bow with respect to someone you hold in high regard
敬 carries the sense of respect or reverence; 佩 means to admire or hold in esteem. Stacked together they intensify into deep admiration for a person you look up to.
敬 — 苟 (gǒu, phonetic) + 攵 (tap/strike)
Originally depicted a person being urged or disciplined with a stick (攵), with 苟 providing the sound. The early sense was 'to warn' or 'to be on guard,' which extended to careful, attentive behavior. From there it shifted to 'respect' and 'reverence,' the modern meaning.