Where does “手を切る” come from?

手を切る (Japanese) comes from Japanese 切る, from Japanese 裏切り, from Japanese 裏 — back; behind; other side; inside; reverse side of...

手を切る (Japanese): to cut off a relationship, to break up with...

Definitions

  1. to cut off a relationship, to break up with...

Ancestry of “手を切る”, step by step

手を切る traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 切る

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese切るto cut, to slice, to carve; cut down, fell, chop...
2Japanese裏切りtreachery, betrayal
3Japanese裏back; behind; other side; inside; reverse side of...

via Japanese 手

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese手a hand; a handle, grip; a paw, foreleg
2Middle Chinese手—

via Japanese を

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1JapaneseをA case particle; A conjunctive particle, usually...
2Proto-Japonicwoaccusative marker; away from, off
Every word from Japanese 裏 →Every word from Japanese 切る →Every word from Japanese 裏切り →
手を切る — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer