決 (jué)

to decide, to determine, to judge

Etymology

Phonosemantic compound. 氵 represents the meaning and 夬 represents the sound. Based on the original meaning "burst open". The meaning later shifted to "clear", "cut off", "decide" and "judge".

Shuowen Jiezi

《說文》:“決,行流也。从水,从夬。廬江有決水,出於大別山。”

Components