溶解
róng jiě · HSK 7
to dissolve
🧂💧 溶 = water 氵 + 容 róng (contain); 解 = to untie — to come apart in water
溶 carries the water radical 氵 beside 容 (róng, to hold or contain), and 解 means to untie or break apart. Together: solids breaking apart inside a liquid — to dissolve.
解 — horn 角 + knife 刀 + ox 牛
解 is an ideograph showing hands using a knife (刀) to separate the horn (角) from an ox (牛). The original meaning was to butcher or dismember an ox, which broadened to 'untie, separate, loosen,' and then extended figuratively to 'explain' or 'understand'—to take something apart mentally.