punish, penalty, sentence, punishment
刑 centers on the legal consequences of wrongdoing: punishment, penalties, and sentencing. It covers the formal infliction of a penalty by authority.
刑 combines 开 (a shape associated with a frame or mold) and 刂 (knife), suggesting punishment or cutting as a legal penalty. The exact historical development is uncertain, but the knife component clearly points to punitive action.
The left side 开 looks like a barred frame or stocks, and the right side 刂 is a knife. Picture a criminal locked in the stocks while a knife is used to carry out the punishment.
For ケイ, imagine a criminal receiving a harsh punishment and crying out 'Kay!' in pain: Kay -> ケイ, as the knife enforces the penalty.
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(police) detective
death penalty; capital punishment
execution
prison; jail; gaol; penitentiary
penalty; sentence; punishment
criminal law; penal code
(criminal) punishment; penalty; sentence
(police) detective
punishment
prison sentence (without a stay of execution)
prison term
recommended sentence; prosecution's demand for punishment
reduction of penalty; commutation of a sentence
death by hanging; execution by hanging
judge's sentence; assessment of a case
correctional matters (of a crime); prison affairs
Ministry of Justice (in Tang dynasty China)
exile; banishment; deportation
punishment without a legal trial; vigilantism
capital punishment; death penalty; maximum penalty; ultimate punishment