挫折
cuòzhé · HSK 7
defeat
🧱 defeat + break — a setback that snaps your stride
挫 means to thwart or crush; 折 means to snap or break. Together they name the kind of sharp blow that stops you cold.
折 — hand 扌 + axe 斤
Originally written as 折 with a hand (扌) breaking or chopping something with an axe (斤), depicting the act of snapping or cutting in two. The core meaning 'to break, snap, fold' extends metaphorically to 'bend,' 'turn back,' and 'discount' (as in reducing a price by breaking off part).