Origin

This character appears to combine a tool (the斤 component, which represents an axe or cutting implement) with a small mark to show action or force. The idea is that when you use a tool like an axe to push or strike something, you're forcing it away or rejecting it. Over time, the meaning expanded from this physical sense of pushing away to the more abstract idea of rejecting, withdrawing, or repelling something. The visual image of an active, forceful motion with a tool became the character's way of representing the concept of pushing something back or casting it off.

AI-generated (claude-haiku-4-5), not yet reviewed. Formation type (automated guess): Compound ideographic (combined meanings).