辿り着く
たどりつく · tadoritsuku · JLPT N1 · verb-godan
to reach
🧭 辿る (follow a route) + 着く (arrive) = follow the route until you arrive
辿る (tadoru) means to trace or follow a route, and 着く (tsuku) means to arrive. Together they mean following a path step by step until you finally get there, however hard the way.
着 — sheep 羊 (top) + eye 目 (bottom)
着 originated as a variant of 著, which depicted plants emerging visibly above ground (grass radical 艹 over 者). Over time 着 split off to carry meanings like 'attach,' 'wear,' or a verb suffix marking ongoing action (zhe), while 著 kept senses like 'manifest' or 'author.'