絕

Rupture and definitive severance. Lexical range includes:

1. Physical severance (cutting threads or bonds).

2. Cessation and extinction (total disappearance of family lines, traditions, or sounds).

3. Isolation (spatial remoteness/unreachability or relational breaking of social ties).

4. The absolute or superlative (the unparalleled, peerless, or extreme).

Transitive verb: to cut off, sever, or terminate. Intransitive verb: to come to an end, die out, or become extinct. Modifier: used preceding a noun to denote an absolute or extreme quality. Resultative/Complementary: indicating that an action has reached its absolute limit.

Unlike other terms for "ending" or "stopping," 絕 implies a permanent break—often violent or absolute—that precludes resumption.

Variants: U+7EDD, U+7D76. Tang-period reading: *dzhiuɛt (Fanqie: 情雪).

Avoid translating as a simple "stop" if the context implies a permanent state; "severed," "extinguished," or "absolute" may better preserve the tension of the glyph.