絕

Originally a pictograph:

Oracle bone script (甲骨文): depicted two bundles of thread with slashes through them, representing “cutting thread with a knife.”

Bronze script (金文): written as 𢇍 — four 幺 (“threads”) arranged with 刀 (“knife”), showing repeated cutting of threads.

Small seal script (小篆): restructured into 糸 (“thread, silk”) + 刀 (“knife”) + 卩 (“phonetic, 절”). This yielded the full form 絕.

Clerical and regular script (隸書 / 楷書): stabilized as 絕, but later a graphic simplification produced 絶 (刀 modified), which spread in Japanese and Korean usage.

Thus, the character is fundamentally a phono-semantic compound:

糸 (가는 실 멱, “thread”) — semantic, indicating cutting thread.

卩 (병부 절, “seal, kneeling person”) — phonetic, providing the sound 절.

刀 (칼 도, “knife”) — graphic remnant of the original pictograph.

絶交 (절교) — sever relations

絶望 (절망) — despair

絶壁 (절벽) — sheer cliff

絶対 (절대) — absolute, definitely (Jap./Kor.)

断絶 (단절) — to break off, interruption

Variant history:

絕 — considered the “proper/original” form, preserved in Chinese dictionaries and in Taiwan/Hong Kong standards.

絶 — variant form, widely used in Japan (as the Jōyō kanji) and in Korea.

Korean: Standard Korean Language Dictionary (표준국어대사전) uses 絕 as the head form.

Chinese: Simplified Chinese adopts 绝 (糸 simplified to 纟).

Japanese: uses 絶 as the standard.