断然
だんぜん · danzen · JLPT N1 · adverb
firmly
断 (cut off) + 然 (so, that way) = a cut-clean decision: firm, no wavering
断 means cut off or sever, and 然 means so or thus. A choice cut off from doubt is firm and absolute, which is the sense of 断然.
断 — thread 㡭 (silk bundle) + axe 斤
Originally written with 㡭 (entangled silk threads) on the left and 斤 (axe) on the right, depicting an axe cutting through bundled threads. From this concrete image of severing came the meanings 'to cut off,' 'to break,' and by extension 'to decide' or 'judge'—as in resolving a matter decisively.