挺
tǐng · HSK 2
very
挺 = 扌(hand) + 廷(court); sounds like 'ting' — quite straight, quite good
挺 originally meant to straighten or stick out (hand radical 扌 + 廷 court). The 'quite/rather' sense extends from 'standing out' — 挺好 = quite good, 挺贵 = rather expensive.
挺 — hand radical 扌 + 廷 (court)
A semantic-phonetic compound: 扌 (hand) gives the meaning, while 廷 supplies the sound. The original sense was to pull out or extend with the hand, which broadened to 'straight,' 'erect,' and 'to stand upright.' Modern uses like 'quite' or 'rather' come from this idea of standing out prominently.