解释
jiěshì · HSK 4
explain
💬 解 = untie/解 + 释 = release; untie + release = explain
解 means to untie or loosen a knot; 释 means to release or let go. Together they describe loosening tangled ideas and releasing their meaning — to explain or interpret. The 角 radical in 解 originally showed cutting apart with a horn and knife.
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.