The word 套马杆 is formed by combining the character 套 (tào), meaning to lasso or harness, with 马 (mǎ), meaning horse, and 杆 (gǎn), meaning pole; this sequence creates a compound noun where 套 modifies 马 to specify the action of catching horses, and 杆 denotes the physical tool, resulting in a literal meaning of "horse-lassoing pole" for a device used to capture horses.