拿出
náchū · HSK 2
to take out; to put out
🫳 拿 (take/hold) + 出 (out) = take out, produce
拿 means to hold or grasp; 出 means out or exit. Together 拿出 literally combines holding with outward motion — to produce something, take it out, or put it forward (as in to ante up in a game).
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.
出 — foot 止 emerging from enclosure 凵
出 is a pictograph showing a foot or plant stepping out of a hollow or enclosure, depicting the act of going forth. The original sense of 'coming out' or 'emerging' has remained stable since oracle bone script. It now broadly means 'to exit, go out, or produce.'