敷地
しきち · shikichi · JLPT N2 · noun
site
🧱 敷 = spread out + 地 = ground: land laid out for building = site
敷 also means to lay down, as in 敷物 (floor mat). So 敷地 is ground that has been spread out and set aside for a purpose, which is a site.
敷 — 尃 (fū, phonetic) + 攵 (action)
敷 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The right side 攵 (a hand holding a stick) suggests an action, while 尃 supplies the sound and the idea of spreading or distributing. The original sense was to spread out or apply broadly, which extends to modern meanings like 'to apply' (ointment) or 'to lay out'.
地 — earth 土 + 也 (phonetic)
地 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left component 土 means 'earth' or 'soil' and gives the meaning, while 也 on the right hints at the pronunciation. Originally referring to the ground or land, it broadened to mean 'place,' 'region,' and 'territory.'