TSUMUGU · B1 (est.) · 字
撐
撐 ＝ 扌 ＋ 牚
ㄔㄥ · chēng
verb — to prop up, support; to hold open; to push (a boat)
字源 FORM — what the parts do
扌義a hand
牚聲chēng — gives the sounda brace, a strut
A hand (扌) pushes against something to hold it up — to prop. 牚 chēng, a brace, carries the sound exactly. From 撐住、支撐 to 撐傘、撐船 — a pole set against the riverbed.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
手（扌）拿篙往河底一頂，牚（牚）住船身，整條船穩穩前行。
The hand (扌) sets the pole to the riverbed and braces the boat, holding the whole hull steady forward.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)撐、支撐— to prop up, to support常用
→撐住、撐腰— to hold up; to back up
⇒撐傘、撐船— to hold up an umbrella; to pole a boat
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension
關 · Related
牚chēngthe bare phonetic — the brace, no hand支zhīthe partner sense — 支 is a prop too, 撐 adds the hand pushing