晚点
wǎn diǎn · HSK 4
delayed
🚆⏰ 晚 = late + 点 = point/time; literally late-time (behind schedule)
晚 means late or evening, 点 means point or o'clock. Together 晚点 = late-point, used for trains/flights running behind schedule. The light-dinner sense comes from 晚 (evening) + 点 (a bite, as in 点心 dim sum).
晚 — sun 日 + 免 (avoid/phonetic)
晚 combines 日 (sun) as the meaning component with 免 as the phonetic. The sun element signals a time of day, while 免 hints at the pronunciation wǎn. Originally it referred to the late part of the day when the sun is setting, and from there extended to mean 'late' in a general sense.
点 — fire radical 灬 + 占 (zhān, phonetic)
Originally written 點, a semantic-phonetic compound: 黑 (black) gave the meaning 'small black mark or dot' while 占 supplied the sound. It first referred to ink spots, then extended to 'point, drop, a little,' and verbs like 'to mark' or 'to light (a fire),' reflected in the simplified form's 灬 (fire) component.