进入
jìnrù · HSK 2
go into
🚪➡️ 进 = advance + 入 = enter; together: advance-in, i.e. enter
进 means advance/move forward; 入 means enter/go in. Stacking them gives 进入 = enter into, used for going into a place, state, or stage. Stronger and more formal than 进 alone.
进 — walk radical 辶 + well 井
Originally a semantic-phonetic compound: the walking radical 辶 gives the meaning of movement, while 井 (jǐng, 'well') supplied the sound. The traditional form 進 used 隹 (short-tailed bird) suggesting forward flight; the simplified 进 swapped 隹 for the simpler phonetic 井. The core meaning 'to advance, enter' has stayed stable.
入 — single pictograph, two slanting strokes
入 is a pictograph showing an arrowhead or pointed entrance, with two strokes converging downward to suggest something going inward. The original sense was 'to enter,' and it still carries that meaning today. It contrasts visually with 人 (person), where the strokes cross differently at the top.