死
sǐ
Movement crossed out and locked in place: 死
The picture A cross is drawn over something that was moving, and it stops and stiffens right where it stood. 死 stops the motion and stiffens; 活 keeps breath and motion attached.
Where the picture shows up in 死
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breath stops
我家的鱼死了。
wǒ jiā de yú sǐ le
Our fish died.
Inside the tank, the fins gone still and the fish floating at the surface
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a machine locks up
手机死机了，怎么办？
shǒu jī sǐ jī le, zěn me bàn
My phone froze, what should I do?
A screen stuck on one frame, no button doing anything
死机 is a device locking up
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pushed to the limit
走了一天，我累死了。
zǒu le yì tiān, wǒ lèi sǐ le
I walked all day, I am dead tired.
Coming through the door and collapsing onto the sofa, bag still on
死了 after an adjective marks a degree with nowhere further to go
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a road with no way through
这条路是死路，我们回去吧。
zhè tiáo lù shì sǐ lù, wǒ men huí qù ba
This is a dead end, let us go back.
The end of the alley walled off, so the feet turn around
死路 is a road blocked at the end
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nailed so it cannot move
时间已经定死了，不能改。
shí jiān yǐ jīng dìng sǐ le, bù néng gǎi
The time is already fixed and cannot be changed.
A nail through the date on the calendar so a pushing hand cannot budge it
死 after a verb marks being locked tight
All of it in one picture
死 is one cross drawn over motion. Stop a fish's breath that way and it has died; freeze a phone screen that way and the phone is locked up. Push tiredness all the way to where it cannot go further and you get 累死了, and a road whose end is walled off is a 死路. Nail a time down so it cannot move and you get 定死, fixed beyond changing.