沟通
gōutōng · HSK 5
communicate
📞 沟 = ditch/channel + 通 = pass through; channels that let info pass
沟 originally meant an irrigation ditch or channel, and 通 means to pass through or connect. Together: opening channels so things flow between people — the literal sense of communication as linking up.
沟 — water radical 氵 + 冓 (gòu, phonetic)
A semantic-phonetic compound: 氵 (water) gives the meaning, while 冓 supplies the sound. Originally referred to a water channel or ditch dug for irrigation or drainage. The meaning later broadened to any groove, trench, or furrow, and figuratively to communication channels (as in 沟通).
通 — 辵 (辶) walk + 甬 yǒng (phonetic)
通 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The 辶 (chuò) component means 'walk' or 'movement', giving the meaning of going through or passing. 甬 (yǒng), originally depicting a hanging bell or a path, supplies the sound. Together they convey 'to pass through, communicate, connect'.