強硬
きょうこう · kyoukou · JLPT N1 · na-adj
firm
🪨 強 (strong) + 硬 (hard) = firm, vigorous, stubborn: strong and hard, like a rock
Both characters mean strong or hard, so the word joins physical firmness with resolve. It describes a firm stance or a stubborn person. Pronounced kyoukou.
硬 — stone 石 + 更 (gēng, phonetic)
硬 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The left side 石 'stone' gives the meaning—stones are hard—while the right side 更 originally suggested the pronunciation. From the literal sense of stone-hardness, 硬 extended to mean firm, stiff, or stubborn in both physical and figurative uses.