The word 棘手 is formed through a vivid metaphorical image: 棘 (jí) means "thorns" or "brambles", and 手 (shǒu) means "hand". By directly combining these elements, the term paints a concrete picture of "a hand grasping thorns", which instantly conveys the abstract sense of a situation being troublesome, difficult to handle, or prickly, just as attempting to hold a thorny branch would be painful and awkward.