file, row, rank, tier, column
列 centers on things arranged in a line: a file, row, rank, tier, or column. All meanings share the idea of orderly linear placement.
列 combines 歹 (originally a pictograph of bone or death) with 刂 (knife), but the historical connection to 'row' or 'file' is not straightforward. The character likely developed from an older form meaning 'to arrange' or 'to line up', with the components possibly contributing phonetic or semantic hints that are now obscure.
The left side 歹 looks like a row of bones, and the right side 刂 is a knife. Imagine arranging bones in a neat row with a knife to make a file or column.
For レツ, picture a row of soldiers standing at attention, and their commander shouts 'Let's!' (レツ) to start marching in a column.
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row; line; file; column; queue; rank; procession
train; railway train
series; sequence; system; succession
line; queue; procession; parade
arranging; ordering; sequencing; lining up; laying out
archipelago; chain of islands
attendance; participation; presence
arranging in a line; standing in a row
exhibition; display; putting on show
rank; ranking order; hierarchy
enumeration; list
standing in a row; forming a line; alignment
series (e.g. electrical)
enumeration; citation; listing
same row; same line; same file
back row; rear rank
seniority by length of service
line of battle
funeral procession
nations; states
Kurile Islands
front row
long line; long queue