冻结 dòngjié to freeze (water etc)
to freeze (water etc); (figuratively) to freeze (assets, prices etc)
How to remember 冻结: 冻 cold + 结 tie up = to freeze (water etc).
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How it is used
- Literal 'to freeze (into ice)', but the everyday use is figurative: to freeze assets, funds, prices, or hiring - 冻结资产 (dòngjié zīchǎn) to freeze assets, 工资冻结 a wage freeze.
- In finance/policy it means to halt movement/change; contrast 冷冻 (lěngdòng), which is literally freezing food.