The Chinese characters 消失 (xiāo shī) mean “to disappear” or “to vanish.” To understand the original meaning, let’s break down each character:

• 消 (xiāo): This character originally depicted water evaporating or diminishing. The top part (氵) is the “water radical,” indicating that the character is related to water. The bottom part (肖) originally represented a small amount or something dwindling. Thus, 消 carries the meaning of decreasing, melting away, or disappearing.

• 失 (shī): This character originally depicted a hand dropping something. The top part (𦣻) represents a hand, while the bottom part (夫) signified a person. Therefore, 失 conveyed the meaning of losing something, missing something, or failing to grasp something.

Combined, 消失 (xiāo shī) literally paints a picture of something dwindling away (消) and being lost from sight (失), leading to the overall meaning of “disappear” or “vanish.” This meaning has remained consistent over time, though the characters have undergone some simplification in their modern forms.