抱える
かかえる · kakaeru · JLPT N3 · verb-ichidan
to hold or carry under or in the arms
📦 抱 = hand 扌 + wrap 包: your arms wrap around what you carry
The kanji 抱 joins the hand radical 扌 with 包 (to wrap). The same kanji appears in 抱く (daku, to hug). Kakaeru can also mean to have a problem on your hands, as in 問題を抱える.
抱 — hand radical 扌 + wrap 包
A semantic-phonetic compound. The hand radical 扌 gives the meaning, indicating an action done with the hands, while 包 ('wrap, bundle') supplies the sound 'bāo/bào' and hints at enclosing. Together they depict wrapping something in the arms — to hold, embrace, or carry.