杠 (gàng) - A thick pole or bar & to argue or dispute

杠Tone 4

gàng ｜ 7 strokes ｜ radical: 木

枫惠

杠 · gàng

A thick pole or bar;

to argue or dispute;

to lift or carry together;

to strengthen or reinforce;

in weightlifting, a barbell.

A thick pole or barto argue or disputeto lift or carry together

Usage highlights

BarbellTo argue or disputePole or barSingle barParallel barsBalance beam

Synonyms

  • 杆— pole, rod
  • 棒— stick, club
  • 棍— rod, stick

Antonyms

  • 软— soft (antonym to the rigid, strong sense)
  • 弱— weak (antonym to the strengthening sense)

Usage & contexts

Examples

  • They used a wooden pole (木杠) to carry the heavy load.
  • He likes to argue over small details (爱抬杠).
  • The weightlifter lifted the barbell (杠铃).
  • The team worked together to carry the beam (杠子).

Collocations

  • Barbell(杠铃)
  • To argue or dispute(抬杠)
  • Pole or bar(杠子)
  • Single bar(单杠)
  • Parallel bars(双杠)
  • Balance beam(平衡木杠)

Idioms

  • To argue for the sake of arguing(抬杠拌嘴)
  • Leverage principle(杠杆原理)
  • Iron bar reinforcement(铁杠加固)

Cultural background

FAQ
  • Historically used for carrying heavy objects, often by two people with a pole.
  • In modern context, strongly associated with weightlifting and gym equipment.
  • The 'arguing' sense comes from the image of two people lifting opposite ends of a pole, suggesting opposition.

FAQ