How to Write 搁 (gē) — Meaning “to put; to place; to set aside”

Imagine you are putting a small box (representing the inner part 各) onto a shelf (阁 sounds like 'shelf'), using your hand (扌). The picture of a hand placing a box on a shelf helps you recall that 搁 means 'to put' or 'to place.'

Start with the left radical 扌 (three strokes: horizontal, vertical hook, lift), then write the right part 阁 (9 strokes). The right side 阁 begins with the door-like frame 门 (three strokes: dot, vertical, horizontal hook) and inside is 各 (6 strokes). A common mistake is writing the right part too wide; keep the left and right balanced, with the hand radical slightly narrower.

While 搁 means 'to put or place' (often temporarily), 挨 (āi) means 'to lean on' or 'to suffer through,' and 挫 (cuò) means 'to defeat' or 'to frustrate.' Visually, 搁 has the hand radical plus 阁, whereas 挨 uses the hand radical with 矣, and 挫 uses the hand radical with 坐. Their meanings are unrelated to placing objects.

搁 is common in daily speech for physically putting something down, like 搁下 (gē xià, 'put down') or setting aside tasks. It also appears in idiomatic expressions like 搁置 (gē zhì, 'to shelve') for postponing plans, and 搁浅 (gē qiǎn) for a ship running aground or a project being stalled. You might hear it in casual conversation when someone says '你把书搁在桌上' (put the book on the table).

Common words containing 搁 include: 搁下 (gē xià) — to put down; to lay aside; 搁置 (gē zhì) — to put aside; to shelve; 搁浅 (gē qiǎn) — to run aground; to be stranded.