解析
jiě xī · HSK 7
to analyze
🔍 解 untie/solve + 析 split apart = take a problem apart to analyze it
解 means to untie or solve; 析 means to split wood, hence to separate or break down. Together: pull something apart piece by piece to analyze it. The 木 (wood) in 析 hints at splitting logs with an axe (斤).
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.