The kanji 決 essentially conveys the idea of "deciding," "determining," or "resolving" something. It represents the act of making a choice, settling on a course of action, or reaching a conclusion after considering different options. It implies a sense of finality and commitment.

・On-yomi (音読み): ケツ (ketsu) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): き.める (ki.meru), き.まる (ki.maru)

⚫︎決定 (kettei) Translation: Decision; determination. ⚫︎決心する (kesshin suru) Translation: To resolve; to determine. ⚫︎解決 (kaiketsu) Translation: Solution; settlement; resolution.

The kanji 決 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字). The left side is the water radical 氵(さんずい), which represents "water" or "liquid." The right side is 夬 (ketsu), which conveys the phonetic and semantic elements. Originally, 夬 depicted a sharp knife cutting something. Therefore, 決originally meant breaking up a dam of water; but it was later extended to indicate cutting or breaking something down to make a decision, a resolution.