TSUMUGU · TOCFL 2 (est.) · 字
撲
撲 ＝ 扌 ＋ 菐
ㄆㄨ · pū
verb — to throw oneself at, pounce; to beat at, flap
字源 FORM — what the parts do
扌義a hand
菐聲pú — gives the sounda thicket, the bushy original now worn flat in the glyph
A hand (扌) flings the whole body forward to strike — to pounce, to beat at. 菐 pú carries the sound; you no longer see the bushy thicket it once drew, only the strokes that survived. From the lunge: 撲滅 beating out a fire, 撲倒 throwing down, 撲鼻 a smell that pounces at the nose.
故事 STORY — a scene to remember it by
貓壓低身子，前爪一蹬——整個撲了上去。
The cat flattens, the forepaws push off — and it throws itself forward.
字源記憶法
意 · Meanings
(本義)撲打— to throw oneself at and strike常用
→撲滅、撲倒— to put out; to knock down
→撲鼻、撲面— to rush at (a smell, the wind)
(本義) original meaning · → ⇒ each arrow = one more step of extension
關 · Related
僕púthe same sound-root — 僕 puts a person 亻 beside it (a servant), 撲 puts the hand (the lunge)