追随
zhuīsuí · HSK 7
follow
🐾 追 chase + 随 go-along = follow at someone's heels
Two near-synonyms stacked: 追 (zhuī, chase/pursue) plus 随 (suí, accompany/go along with). Together they mean to follow or be a devoted follower of a person or cause. Note suí shares its sound with 岁 suì (age/years).
追 — 辶 (walk) + 𠂤 (small mound/heap)
Originally a semantic-phonetic compound: 辶 ('walk/movement') gives the meaning of going after something, while 𠂤 supplied the ancient sound. Early bronze inscriptions show it meaning to chase or pursue an enemy. The modern senses — 'pursue,' 'chase after,' 'retroactively' — all extend from this original idea of following in motion.
随 — 辶 (walk) + 阝 (mound) + 有 phonetic
随 combines the walk radical 辶 with a phonetic component derived from 隋. The original sense is 'to follow along a path,' from the walking radical suggesting movement after someone. Over time it broadened to mean 'follow,' 'accompany,' or 'comply with.'