显眼
xiǎn yǎn · HSK 7
eye-catching
👁️ 显眼 = 显 show/appear + 眼 eye; something that shows itself to the eye = eye-catching
The literal compound is show + eye, which lines up neatly with the English gloss eye-catching. 显 carries appear or become visible, and 眼 is the everyday word for eye, so the two together name anything that stands out to the eye.
显 — sun 日 + head/page 頁 (simplified from 顯)
Originally 顯, showing a head 頁 looking at silk threads under the sun 日, suggesting things made visible or apparent. The meaning extended from 'clearly seen' to 'manifest, evident, prominent.' Simplified to 显 by reducing the silk-and-head element to a small mark beneath 日.
眼 — eye radical 目 + 艮 (phonetic)
眼 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left side 目 means 'eye' and gives the meaning, while 艮 on the right supplies the sound. Originally referring to the eyeball, it broadened over time to mean 'eye' generally and, by extension, 'a hole' or 'key point'.