Taxonomy of meanings for 握:　　

  • 握 wò (OC: qrooɡ MC: ʔɯɔk) 於角切 入 廣韻：【持也 】
    • CATCH
      • vtoNcatch with one's hands
      • vtoNpassivebe caught; be grasped
    • HAND
      • nmhand, fist (insofar as these may be used as "containers")
      • ncpost-V{NUM}.post-Nclassifiera handful of
    • HOLD
      • vtoNgrip firmly; hold (a physical object, probably without a handle) in one's hands; abstractly: keep a firm grip on, hold on to
      • vtoNpassivebe held in one's hands
      • vtoNfigurativeabstractly: hold on toCH
    • CONTROL
      • COVER
        • VOLUME MEASURES
          • LENGTH MEASURES
            • ARROW
              • = 渥
              • = 帷

              Additional information about 握

              說文解字: 【握】，搤持也。从手、屋聲。 【於角切】 【(𦥆)】、古文握。

                Criteria
              • HOLD

                1. The most current general and neutral word for holding something in any way concrete or abstract is chí 持 (ant. shī 失 "lose hold of").

                2. Zhí 執 is often inchoative "take hold of", and then comes to mean "hold on to, keep holding" as one goes along.

                3. Cāo 操 refers to holding and holding onto something, often taking it along as one goes along, sometimes wielding it as a weapon.

                4. Bǐng 秉 refers to clasping something firmly, often solemnly with both hands, and sometimes several things so as to hold and keep them together and not to let go.

                5. Jiá 挾 refers specifically to holding something under one's armpit, but the word also has some more generalised uses.

                6. Wò 握 and bǎ 把 are rather dramatic words referring to gripping something and not letting go of it.

                7. Gǒng 拱 refers to holding something politely in both hands.

              • CATCH

                1. The common general word is 獲 (ant. shì 釋 "set free") which can refer to the capturing or obtaining of anything that might conceivably try to escape (for dé 得 "obtain what generally does not try to escape capture" see OBTAIN).

                2. Qǔ 取 (ant. shě 捨 "relinguish, reject") is to take control of by force and applies typically to enemy territories or enemy cities in a conflict. See WIN

                3. Chí 持 (ant. shī 失 "lose hold of") refers to the capturing of non-human prey.

                4. Zhi 執 (refers to the capturing of any human and non-human prey. See also ARREST.

                5. Náng 囊 is specifically to capture by the use of a sack or bag.

                6. Guà 絓 refers to catching something on a hook, typically a hook attached to a string.

                7. Wò 握 is specifically to catch and get hold of something with one's bare hands.

                8. Yú 漁 refers very specifically to the catching and killing of fish. [See ANGLE]

                9. Dé 得 "obtain" can sometimes come to refer to catching what is trying to escape capture.

                10. Bǔ 捕 refers to catching animals typically in a habitual or professional way.

                NB: Zhuō 捉 came to mean "catch" in post-Han times.