取り立てる
とりたてる · toritateru · JLPT N1 · noun
collect
💰 取り = take, 立てる = raise up: take what is owed and raise it up for payment
Etymology: 取る (take) plus 立てる (cause to stand up). The sense shifted from raising a claim to forcibly collecting money, hence the extortion meaning.
取 — ear 耳 + hand 又
取 originally depicted a hand (又) grasping an ear (耳), referencing the ancient practice of soldiers cutting off enemies' left ears as proof of kills to claim rewards. The meaning broadened from 'seize/take by force' to the general sense of 'take, get, obtain' used today.
立 — person standing on ground (大 over 一)
Pictograph of a person standing with arms outstretched on the ground line below. The original oracle bone form clearly shows a frontal human figure planted on the earth. The core meaning 'to stand' extended to 'establish, set up, erect.'