转向
zhuǎn xiàng , zhuàn xiàng · HSK 5
to change direction
🔄 转 = turn/rotate + 向 = direction; literally 'turn direction'
转 (zhuǎn/zhuàn) means to turn or rotate; 向 means direction or toward. Together: change direction. Figurative senses (change stance, get lost) extend from the literal 'turning where you're heading'.
转 — car radical 车 + 专 (phonetic)
转 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left side 车 (cart/wheel) gives the meaning, evoking something that turns or rotates like a wheel. The right side 专 supplies the sound. Originally referring to the turning of a cart's wheels, it broadened to mean 'turn,' 'rotate,' or 'shift' in general.
向 — roof 宀 + mouth 口
Originally a pictograph of a house with a north-facing window, showing an opening in a wall under a roof. The early meaning was 'north window,' which extended to 'the direction something faces,' then broadly to 'toward' or 'direction.' The modern shape simplified the window into 口.