Origin

This character combines a net or cage on top with the character for ability or skill below. The net represents a trap or enclosure that catches and stops things, while the ability component adds the sense of power or force to that stopping action. Together, they suggest the idea of being stopped or held back by force, which came to mean quitting or withdrawing from something. The image is of being trapped or confined, which naturally extended to the meaning of ceasing an activity or leaving a position.