过头
guò toú · HSK 7
to overdo it
🧢 过 (cross/exceed) + 头 (head) = go past your head = overdo it, overstep the limit
过 means to cross or exceed, 头 means head. Together: something rises above the head, going past the safe limit. Sound hook: guò toú echoes go too (far) — to go too far is to overdo it.
过 — 辶 walk radical + 呙 (phonetic)
过 combines the walking radical 辶, suggesting motion or passage, with 呙 serving as the phonetic component. Originally it depicted crossing or passing by on foot, which extended to meanings like 'to pass,' 'to cross over,' and later 'past' or 'excessive.' The simplified form replaces the traditional 過.
头 — 页 (head/page) + 豆 (bean, phonetic)
The traditional form 頭 combines 頁 (xié), meaning 'head', with 豆 (dòu) as the phonetic component. 頁 itself originally depicted a person with an emphasized head. The simplified form 头 is a modern shorthand that replaces 豆+頁 with a simpler shape while keeping the same meaning of 'head' or 'top'.