秉 bǐng to grasp
to grasp; to hold
怎么记住“秉”: 禾 grain + 彐 snout = to grasp. A goat pushes its snout into the sack of grain, so the farmer jumps forward to grasp the sack before it is empty.
部件结构
会意 · Meaning + meaning
Two or more parts whose meanings together make the new meaning.
秉 = 禾 grain + 彐 snout
- 禾 grain meaning
- 彐 snout meaning
A goat pushes its snout into the sack of grain, so the farmer jumps forward to grasp the sack before it is empty.
How it came to be
The oldest form shows a hand holding a plant by the stalk.
用法
- To hold/grasp, hence to uphold (a principle): 秉持 (bǐngchí) to uphold/maintain (a belief), 秉承 (bǐngchéng) to act on / carry forward (a will, tradition), 秉公 (bǐnggōng) to act justly.
- 秉烛夜谈 (bǐngzhú-yètán) means to talk late into the night by candlelight. Formal/literary.