僵 jiāng stiff
stiff; still; motionless; rigid; deadlock
How to remember 僵: 亻 person + 畺 field borders = stiff. The farmer is the only person who walks all the field borders in the frost, and he comes home with his fingers stiff.
Component breakdown
僵 = 亻 person + 畺 field borders
- 亻 person
- 畺 field borders
The farmer is the only person who walks all the field borders in the frost, and he comes home with his fingers stiff.
How it is used
- Stiff, rigid, unable to move or budge - 僵硬 (jiāngyìng) stiff, 冻僵 (dòngjiāng) frozen stiff, 僵尸 (jiāngshī) a hopping corpse/zombie.
- Figuratively a deadlock - 僵局 (jiāngjú) an impasse, 僵持 (jiāngchí) to be in stalemate, 关系僵了 the relationship has frozen over.
- The through-line: motion/negotiation locked up, no give.