託

1. Physical Support: The act of holding something up from below; propping an object up.

2. Entrustment and Reliance:

• Commissioning: Placing a responsibility or burden upon another (active).
• Relying: Leaning on another for support or assistance (passive).

3. Pretext: Using a reason as a "prop" to conceal true intentions; providing an excuse (e.g., 托辭).

• Transitive: [Subject] entrusts [Object] to [Recipient].
• Intransitive: [Subject] relies upon [Source].
• Instrumental/Causative: Using [X] as a pretext to achieve [Y].

• vs. 付 (fù): While 付 is a straightforward transfer of an object or power, 託 implies a continuing relationship of reliance or the expectation that the recipient will "hold" the responsibility.
• vs. 委 (wěi): 委 often suggests delegation from a superior to a subordinate or abandonment to fate; 託 is generally a more conscious choice of specific support.
• vs. 寄 (jì): 寄 emphasizes temporary placement, lodging, or sending; 託 focuses on the relationship of trust and reliance.

The forms 託 and 托 are interchangeable in pre-modern contexts; the presence or absence of the hand radical does not typically signal a shift in meaning.

Agency Ambiguity: In concise phrases, it may not be immediately clear if the subject is providing support (commissioning) or seeking it (relying). Agency should be determined by surrounding agents and social hierarchy within the passage.