手段
shǒuduàn · HSK 5
recourse
🛠️ 手段 = hand + section/means → a method at hand
手 means hand, 段 means a segment or means. Together they name the tool or tactic one has on hand to get something done — a resource, recourse, or wile deployed to reach a goal.
手 — pictograph of a hand with five fingers
手 is a pictograph showing an open hand with fingers and a wrist. Early bronze and oracle bone forms clearly depict five splayed fingers, which simplified over time into the modern shape. It keeps its original meaning of 'hand' and also serves as a radical in many characters related to hand actions.
段 — left component 𠂉 + right component 殳 (weapon/strike)
段 originally depicted striking or hammering a piece of stone or metal with a tool, shown by the 殳 'strike' element on the right. From this 'hammering/forging' sense it extended to mean a section or segment cut off, and today it commonly means a paragraph, stage, or piece.