逃走
táozǒu · HSK 5
run away
🏃💨 逃 = flee + 走 = walk/go; together: flee-and-go = run away
逃 (táo) means escape or flee, and 走 (zǒu) means to walk or go. The compound literally stacks two motion-away verbs, so the meaning intensifies into fleeing or running off.
逃 — 辶 walk radical + 兆 zhào (phonetic)
逃 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The walking radical 辶 carries the meaning of motion or going, while 兆 supplies the sound. Together they convey the idea of moving away, hence 'to flee' or 'to escape'.
走 — person running 夭 + foot 止
Originally a pictograph of a person with arms swinging (夭) above a foot (止), depicting someone running. The bottom 止 (foot) was later simplified to a form resembling 火 in modern script. The original sense was 'to run,' which still survives in compounds; the everyday meaning shifted to 'to walk' or 'to go.'