洗礼
xǐ lǐ · HSK 7
baptism (lit. or fig.)
💧 洗 wash + 礼 rite = a washing ceremony = baptism
洗 (xǐ) means to wash and 礼 (lǐ) means rite or ceremony, so 洗礼 is literally a washing-rite. The figurative sense, a trial that transforms you, grows straight out of that wash-clean-and-renew root.
洗 — water radical 氵 + 先 (xiān)
A semantic-phonetic compound. The water radical 氵 indicates the meaning (washing with water), while 先 supplies the sound, originally close to xiǎn/xǐ. The character has long meant 'to wash' or 'rinse,' and by extension 'to cleanse' or 'wash away.'
礼 — 示 (altar/ritual) + 乚 (simplified from 豊)
Originally 禮, showing 示 (altar) beside 豊 (a ritual vessel of grain), depicting offerings made at a shrine. The character meant religious ceremony, then broadened to social rites, courtesy, and gifts. The simplified form 礼 keeps 示 and replaces 豊 with the abbreviated 乚.