拿
ná · HSK 1
take
✋ 拿 = 合 (join) + 手 (hand) — hands joining to take hold
The character 拿 combines 合 (close together) on top with 手 (hand) below, giving the sense of a hand closing on something to grasp or take. Sounds like 'nah' — a hand says 'nah, this is mine now.'
拿 — hand 手 + combine 合
拿 is a semantic compound: 合 (combine, bring together) sits over 手 (hand), giving the idea of hands joining to grasp something. It is a relatively late character that replaced the older 拏 in the meaning 'to take, hold, or seize.' Today it broadly means to take or hold in the hand.