抓紧
zhuā jǐn · HSK 4
to grasp firmly
✊ 抓 grab + 紧 tight = grab tightly; hold firm or seize the moment
抓 means grasp/seize, 紧 means tight/urgent. Together they mean to grip firmly, or by extension, to urgently focus on something or make the most of limited time.
抓 — hand radical 扌 + 爪 (claw)
A semantic-phonetic compound. The hand radical 扌 gives the meaning—an action done with the hand—while 爪 (claw) supplies both sound and sense, evoking fingers gripping like claws. Together they convey the idea of grabbing, snatching, or scratching.
紧 — 臣 minister + 又 hand on top + 糸 silk below
Originally written 緊, this character combines 臤 (a hand 又 grasping firmly, with 臣 as phonetic) over 糸 'silk thread'. The image is of silk threads pulled taut by hand, giving the core meaning 'tight, taut'. From there it extended to 'urgent' and 'pressing'.