road

涂 is composed of 水 (water) and 余 (surname, me). 水 is a pictograph of a river, while 余 depicts the act of pulling up weeds. In ancient times, rivers served as vital transportation routes, and weeds growing along or in the water severely obstructed transport and had to be cleared away. Thus, 涂 came to mean a road or pathway. Today, 涂 is rarely used independently in this sense, as its meaning has largely been taken over by 途.