撕
sī · HSK 7
to tear
📄 扌hand + 斯 (sī, phonetic) = use the hands to sī apart: to tear
The 扌 hand radical tells you it is something hands do, and 斯 sī carries the sound. Pull paper with both hands until it splits and you have 撕.
撕 — hand 扌 + this 斯 (phonetic)
撕 is a phono-semantic compound. The hand radical 扌 signals a manual action, while 斯 (sī) supplies the sound. The character means 'to tear' or 'to rip apart' with the hands, a meaning that fits naturally with the hand component.