最高
さいこう · saikou · JLPT N3 · na-adj
the most
🏔️🥇 最高 = most + high; the very highest
最 (sai) means most and 高 (kou) means high or tall, so together they mean the highest. In everyday speech, saikou! is also a common way to say awesome or the best.
最 — top 冃 (hat/cover) + bottom 取 (take)
Originally a compound suggesting taking something even at risk, with 冃 (a covering, often confused with 日 sun) over 取 (to seize). Over time it shifted from 'to risk taking' to the superlative meaning 'most' or 'extremely', its modern use in Chinese.
高 — pictograph of a tall building/tower
高 is a pictograph of a tall structure, likely a watchtower or multi-story gate, with a roof on top, an upper chamber, and a base below. From this concrete image of height it extended to the general meanings 'tall,' 'high,' and figuratively 'lofty' or 'noble.'