绝招
jué zhāo · HSK 7
masterstroke
🥋 绝招 = 绝 (ultimate, unsurpassed) + 招 (move/trick) = the ultimate move
绝 means absolute or peerless; 招 is a move or maneuver, as in a martial-arts technique. Together they name the one peerless maneuver you save for last — a masterstroke or finishing blow no rival can counter.
绝 — silk 纟 + 巴 (phonetic-ish, knife cutting threads)
绝 originally depicted cutting silk threads with a knife, conveying the idea of severing or cutting off completely. From this concrete sense it extended to mean 'to break off,' 'exhausted,' and figuratively 'absolute' or 'extreme.' The simplified form replaced the older right-hand component with 巴.
招 — hand radical 扌 + 召 (call)
招 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The hand radical 扌 supplies the meaning—an action done with the hand—while 召 (to summon, call) gives both phonetic value and reinforces the sense. Together they depict beckoning someone with a hand gesture, extended to 'recruit' or 'attract'.