The word 矛盾 (máodùn), meaning "contradiction", is formed through a classic conceptual metaphor originating from an ancient Chinese fable. It directly combines the characters for "spear" (矛) and "shield" (盾), referencing a story in which a merchant boasted that his spear could pierce any shield, and then that his shield could block any spear, thus creating an inherent logical conflict between the two opposed functions. The term therefore embodies the idea of mutual opposition or inconsistency by pictorially juxtaposing two incompatible objects whose very purposes negate each other.