About
The character "杠" originally depicted a specific type of wood or a stout pole, as evidenced by its composition combining the tree radical (木) with the element (工), which may suggest a tool or a straight, workable object. Its core meaning has consistently centered on the idea of a thick, horizontal bar, such as a carrying pole or the bar of a weightlifting set. Over time, this concrete noun gave rise to a range of verbal and extended meanings, including the action of prying or levering with such a bar, and later, more figuratively, to denote the act of arguing obstinately or nitpicking over words, drawing a parallel to the unyielding and confrontational nature of two rigid objects clashing. This semantic expansion from a physical tool to a metaphor for verbal contention illustrates a common path of linguistic development where tangible objects inform abstract social actions.
Etymology Hide
Example Sentences Hide
他用力抬起了那根杠。
这个杠杆原理很简单。
他们俩又开始抬杠了。
健身房里有很多杠铃。
他用红笔在错字上画了条杠。
财务杠杆用得好能放大收益。
辩论中他总是喜欢强词夺理地杠。
单杠运动需要极强的上肢力量。