现在
xiàn zài · HSK 1
now
⏰ 现 = present/appear + 在 = exist/at — 'presently existing' = now
现 means 'present' or 'to appear', and 在 means 'to be at' or 'exist'. Together they literally mean 'presently existing' or 'at the present', which is 'now'. The same 在 appears in 在家 (at home).
在 — earth 土 + phonetic 才
Originally a phono-semantic compound: 土 (earth) gives the meaning of a place or location, while 才 supplies the sound. It came to mean 'to be present/located at,' and now also serves as a grammatical marker for ongoing actions, like 'in the middle of doing.'