catch, seize, grasp, hold, arrest, capture
掴 centers on taking hold of something firmly with the hand: catching, seizing, grasping, or capturing. The arrest sense is a specific application of physically restraining someone.
掴 is a phono-semantic compound: the hand radical 扌 indicates the action of the hand, while 国 (カク) provides the sound. The character likely developed as a specialized way to write 'grasp' or 'seize'.
The hand radical 扌 beside 国 (country) suggests a hand taking control of a territory: grasping, seizing, or capturing it firmly.
For カク, imagine catching a cackling goose by the neck: cack -> カク, and your hand seizes it tightly.
to seize; to catch; to grasp; to grip; to grab; to clutch; to hold; to catch hold of; to lay one's hands on
grip
grabbing hold; eagle grip; tight hold
to get the hang of; to learn the secret to
a handful (of)
to have something on someone; to catch someone out; to trip someone up; to find someone's fault; to get evidence on someone; to get a lead on someone; to grab by the tail
to snatch (at); to grab
to let someone hold; to make someone grasp
to grab at; to grasp at; to clutch at
to grab up
to grasp; to get
lifting throw
a drowning man will clutch at a straw
to grasp at the air
to grab (someone) by the collar; to seize (someone) by the lapels
to grasp at straws; to resort to desperate measures
to seize (someone) by the collar; to grab (someone) by the scruff of the neck; to collar (someone)
to obtain evidence
buying near the top of the market