社团
shètuán · HSK 7
association
🎭 社 society + 团 group = a club or association
社 means society or community (the same 社 as in 社会), and 团 means a group or band of people. Put them together and you get an organized club, society, or association — like a school club.
社 — 示 (altar/spirit) + 土 (earth)
Originally referred to the god of the soil and the altar where villagers worshipped it. The 示 component signals ritual or spirits, while 土 means earth, together evoking a community shrine. The meaning later broadened to 'community' and 'society'.
团 — enclosure 囗 + 才 (phonetic/abbreviated 專)
Originally written 團, showing an enclosure 囗 around 專 (a spindle) suggesting something wound into a round shape. The character came to mean 'round,' 'lump,' or 'group.' The simplified form 团 keeps the enclosure 囗 but replaces the inner element with 才 for ease of writing.