念願
ねんがん · nengan · JLPT N1 · noun
desire
🌠 念 = thought + 願 = wish: a wish you keep thinking about for a long time
念 (nen) means a lingering thought or mindful attention, and 願 (gan) means a wish or vow. Together they name a long-held desire you keep returning to and hoping will come true.
念 — 今 (now, phonetic) + 心 (heart)
念 is a semantic-phonetic compound: 心 (heart) gives the meaning, while 今 (now) supplies the sound. The original sense was 'what is on the heart right now' — a thought held in mind. From this came the modern meanings 'to think of,' 'to miss,' and 'to recite' (holding words in mind).