About
铡 is a phono-semantic compound referring to a large, hinged lever-knife for chopping fodder or straw. Its traditional form, 鍘, combines the metal radical 金, indicating the tool's material, with the phonetic element 則. The simplified form follows the same structure with 钅 and 则. The character's meaning extended from the tool itself to the act of chopping with it, and historically, it also denoted an instrument of execution.