屈服
qū fú · HSK 7
to surrender
🏳️ 屈 (bend/crouch) + 服 (submit/obey) = bend and obey = to surrender
屈 means to bend or bow down; 服 means to submit or obey. Together they describe yielding: you bend and then obey. Sounds like chyoo-foo.
服 — 月 (moon/flesh) + 𠬝 (kneeling figure with hand)
Originally depicted a hand subduing a kneeling person beside a boat (later simplified to 月), suggesting submission or service. The meaning extended from 'submit/serve' to 'clothing' (what one wears in service) and 'to take' as in medicine. The phonetic role of 𠬝 helps fix the reading fú.