中止
ちゅうし · chuushi · JLPT N3 · noun
suspension
🛑 中止 = middle + stop: halted partway through
中 (chuu) means middle and 止 (shi) means stop. Together they describe something cut off in the middle before it finishes, such as an event that is called off or suspended. Compare 停止 (teishi), which means a plain stop or halt.
中 — vertical stroke 丨 through enclosure 口
Pictograph of a banner or pole piercing the center of a target or territory, depicting the idea of 'middle' or 'center'. The horizontal frame represents boundaries, and the vertical line marks the central axis. The meaning extended from spatial center to 'middle, central, China' (中国, the Middle Kingdom).
止 — pictograph of a foot/toe
止 originally depicted a human foot with toes, shown as a footprint on the ground. From this concrete image of a foot it came to mean 'to stop' or 'halt' — the place where a step ends. It also serves as a component in many characters relating to feet, walking, or stopping, such as 步 and 正.