茂密
mào mì · HSK 7
dense
🌳🌿 茂 lush (grass radical 艹 on top) + 密 dense/close = thickly packed greenery
Both halves point at thick growth: 茂 carries the grass radical 艹 and means luxuriant, while 密 means dense or tightly spaced. Stack them and you get foliage so packed you cannot see through it.
密 — 宀 roof + 必 (phonetic) + 山 mountain
Originally referring to a hidden, sheltered place in the mountains, 密 combines 宀 (roof/cover) over 必 (phonetic) with 山 (mountain) at the base. The meaning extended from 'secluded mountain hideaway' to 'dense, close, secret'. Today it commonly means dense, intimate, or secret.