撑
chēng · HSK 6
prop up
🤚 扌(hand) + 掌(palm) — a hand bracing or propping up
撑 combines the hand radical 扌 with 掌 (palm). The phonetic 掌 also hints at the chēng/zhǎng sound family. Core sense: a hand pushing against something to hold it up, brace it, or pole a boat forward.
撑 — hand radical 扌 + 掌 phonetic 牚
A semantic-phonetic compound. The hand radical 扌 signals an action done with the hands, while the right side gives the sound. The original sense of propping or supporting with the hands extended to meanings like 'to prop up,' 'to hold open' (as an umbrella), and 'to be full to bursting.'