引き分け
ひきわけ · hikiwake · JLPT N2 · noun
draw
⚖️ 引き = pull, 分け = divide: both sides pull, so the result is split evenly
引く (hiku) means to pull and 分ける (wakeru) means to divide. Together they describe a contest where neither side pulls ahead and the result is shared.
引 — bow 弓 + vertical stroke 丨
A compound ideograph showing a bow 弓 with a vertical line 丨 representing the drawn bowstring. The original meaning was 'to draw a bow,' which extended to 'pull,' 'lead,' 'guide,' and 'cite.' The vertical stroke depicts the action of pulling the string back.
分 — knife 刀 + eight 八 (split apart)
分 originally depicted a knife (刀) cutting something into two parts, shown by 八 above (which itself meant 'divide'). The core sense is 'to divide' or 'split', from which extended meanings like 'portion', 'minute', and 'part' developed. Pronounced fèn, it carries the sense of an allotted share.