congeal, freeze, stiff, be absorbed in
凝 centers on a substance or state becoming thick, solid, or fixed: liquids congealing or freezing, muscles stiffening, or the mind being so absorbed in something that it becomes rigidly focused.
muscle stiffness (esp. in shoulders)
to become stiff (of muscles)
condensation (of ideas, emotions, etc.); concentration
coagulation; freezing; solidification
stare; gaze; fixation
to concentrate; to focus on; to devote; to apply oneself
to stiffen; to harden
agglomeration; clumping together
solidification; congelation; freezing; curdling; setting
tendency to become totally absorbed in something; monomania; perfectionism; fastidiousness; meticulousness
to congeal; to gelatinize; to jellify; to jell; to gell; to freeze
tuff
Bose-Einstein condensate
melanin-concentrating hormone
elaborate; exquisite; ornate; refined; sophisticated
too much thinking gets you nowhere; excessive enthusiasm clouds one's judgment
to freeze; to congeal
to freeze; to congeal
congelation; congealment; jelly
to be into something (e.g. a hobby)
凝 combines the ice radical 冫 with 疑, which likely contributes the sound and the idea of something becoming fixed or congealed. The exact historical development of the right side is uncertain.
The ice radical 冫 on the left suggests coldness, while the right side 疑 looks like a person frozen in doubt. Imagine a liquid turning to ice and becoming stiff, or a person so absorbed they are frozen in place.
For ギョウ, picture a giant block of ice congealing around a person named Gyo: Gyo -> ギョウ, and the ice freezes him solid.