Two-stroke ice radical on the left — two short angled strokes picturing ice crystals. 凌 originally meant a slab of ice, and from there the senses of rising above (climbing onto an ice ridge) and overriding or bullying. Groups with 冰 ice, 冷 cold, 冻 frozen, 凄 chilly.
Right side 夌 supplies the sound — líng read straight across with no shift. 夌 itself is the older standalone meaning to overstep or transcend. Same phonetic drives 陵 hill tomb, 菱 water chestnut, 棱 edge of a ridge, 绫 silk — a productive líng family.
