搏斗
bó doù · HSK 7
to fight
🥊 BOxing it out, no DOUbt — a real struggle
搏 and 斗 both mean to fight on their own. Together they double down into a fierce physical struggle or wrestling match.
斗 — pictograph of a ladle/dipper with handle
斗 originally depicted a long-handled ladle or dipper used to scoop grain or wine, and by extension became a unit of dry measure (about 10 liters). The same graph was later borrowed for the unrelated meaning 'to fight,' which in simplified Chinese merged with the traditional character 鬥. Context tells the two senses apart.