The Chinese word 断定 (duàndìng), meaning "to conclude" or "to determine," is a compound verb formed through the combination of two meaningful characters: 断 (duàn), which originally means "to cut off" or "to sever," and by extension "to judge" or "to decide," and 定 (dìng), which means "to settle," "to fix," or "to make stable." In this semantic compound, the first character 断 conveys the act of making a decisive judgment or cutting through ambiguity, while the second character 定 reinforces and completes the idea by emphasizing the finality and settled nature of that judgment. Together, they create a logical sequence and a nuanced meaning stronger than either character alone, essentially portraying the process of "deciding and settling upon a conclusion."