前進
ぜんしん · zenshin · JLPT N3 · noun
progress
➡️🚶 前進 = front + advance: you keep moving to the front
前 (zen) means front or before, and 進 (shin) means advance, the same kanji as 進む susumu, to move forward. Put together, the word means advancing toward the front. A soldier ordered to march forward hears 前進!
前 — top 丷 + 一 + 月 (moon) + 刂 (knife)
Originally written 歬, depicting a foot 止 above a boat 舟, meaning to advance or go forward. Over time the form evolved and the knife radical 刂 was added, while 止 and 舟 fused into the modern shape. The core meaning 'front, before, ahead' has stayed consistent.