The term "炒鱿鱼" is formed by directly combining the characters for "stir-fry" (炒) and "squid" (鱿鱼) to create a metaphorical meaning; when squid is stir-fried, it curls up, which visually resembles the rolling up of bedding or possessions that historically occurred when someone was dismissed from a job, thus idiomatically representing the act of being fired.