分解

fēnjiě

verb HSK 5 #9,199

Meanings

细菌可以分解有机物。

Xìjūn kěyǐ fēnjiě yǒujīwù.

Bacteria can decompose organic matter.

老师把这个复杂的问题分解成几个简单的步骤。

Lǎoshī bǎ zhège fùzá de wèntí fēnjiě chéng jǐ gè jiǎndān de bùzhòu.

The teacher broke down this complex problem into several simple steps.

塑料很难自然分解。

Sùliào hěn nán zìrán fēnjiě.

Plastic is hard to decompose naturally.

usage

分解 works both literally (chemical decomposition) and figuratively (breaking down a problem into parts).

分 fēn

解 jiě