摧毁
cuīhuǐ · HSK 7
to destroy; to wreck
💥 摧 = hand (扌) topples the tall (崔); 毁 = weapon (殳) smashes the mortar (臼)
Both characters pack physical force into their radicals. Together they double up on destruction — one knocks it down, the other grinds what remains. cuī-huǐ even sounds percussive, like two hammer blows.
毁 — 臼 mortar + 工 work + 殳 weapon/strike
Originally depicted striking (殳) something in a mortar (臼) to break it apart, with 工 as a phonetic and semantic helper suggesting the action. The core image is of pounding or smashing, which extended from physical destruction to ruining, slandering, or defaming someone.