定义
dìngyì · HSK 7
definition
📖 dìngyì = settle + meaning — nailing down what something means
定 means to fix or settle, 义 means meaning or righteousness. Together they settle the meaning of a word — a definition. The sound ding-yee can remind you of a bell (ding!) that signals the final answer.
定 — roof 宀 + 正 (correct/upright, phonetic)
Originally written with 宀 (roof) over 正 (upright/correct), suggesting a household settled and orderly under its roof. Over time 正 simplified to 㐬-like form at the bottom, and the meaning shifted from 'settled home' to the broader senses of 'fix, stable, decide.'