受け持つ
うけもつ · ukemotsu · JLPT N2 · verb-godan
to take (be in) charge of
🤲 受け持つ = receive (受ける) + hold (持つ): you take it on and keep it
Built from 受け (uke, to receive) and 持つ (motsu, to hold). Once a task is handed to you, you hold on to it, so you are the one in charge of it. A teacher who 受け持つ a class receives the class and keeps it for the year.
受 — hand 爫 (top) + 冖 + hand 又 (bottom)
Originally a pictograph showing two hands passing an object (the middle 冖 represented a boat or tray) between them. It depicted the act of giving and receiving, so the character meant both 'to give' and 'to receive.' Later 授 was created with the hand radical 扌 to mean 'give,' leaving 受 to mean 'receive' or 'accept.'
持 — hand 扌 + temple 寺 (phonetic)
持 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The hand radical 扌 carries the meaning 'to hold' or 'grasp', while 寺 supplies the sound (it once read close to chí). Originally depicting a hand holding something firmly, it broadened to mean 'maintain', 'support', or 'keep' over time.