预期
yūqí · HSK 5
expect
🔮 预 = beforehand + 期 = period; 'beforehand-period' = expect
预 carries the sense of 'in advance' (also in 预备 prepare, 预订 reserve). 期 means a set time or period. Together: setting something in advance for a future time — to anticipate or expect.
期 — 其 (phonetic) + 月 (moon/time)
期 is a phono-semantic compound. The right side 月 (moon) signals meaning, since lunar cycles marked fixed time periods in ancient China. The left side 其 supplies the sound. Together it points to a set time, period, or appointed date — meanings still carried today in words like 期间 and 日期.