TSUMUGU · TOCFL B2 (est.) · 字
竭
竭 ＝ 立 ＋ 曷
ㄐㄧㄝˊ · jié
verb — to exhaust, use up, run dry
字源 FORM — what the parts do
曷聲hé — gives the sound
IFThé → jié — the sound shifted
A standing figure (立) and 曷 hé — to drain to the bottom, run dry. The original sense is the dried-up well; from there, to spend completely, to give one's all: 竭力, 竭盡, 枯竭. 曷 carries the sound, worn far from hé to jié.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
那人站著（立）使盡了最後一分力，水也乾到了底。
The figure stands (立) and spends his last strength; the water, too, has run dry to the bottom.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)枯竭、涸竭— to run dry, be exhausted常用
→竭力、竭盡— to use up, give one's all常用
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension