维护
wéihù · HSK 4
safeguard
🛡️ 维 = tie/connect + 护 = protect; tie-and-protect = uphold
维 originally meant a rope tying things together (silk radical 纟); 护 means to guard or shield. Together they mean to keep something bound together and protected — to maintain, safeguard, or uphold.
护 — speech radical 讠 + 户 (door/household)
Originally written 護, combining the speech radical 言 with the phonetic 蒦. The simplified form 护 replaces the right side with 户 (door/household), suggesting guarding a home. The core meaning has long been 'to protect, defend, or shield.'