音読み: ショウ
訓読み: ぬま
画数: 8
部首: 氵（さんずい）
Meaning
Swamp / Bog / Marsh.
- 沼 — swamp; bog
- 沼地 — marshland; swampy ground
- 泥沼 — muddy bog; inextricable mess
- 池沼 — ponds and marshes
沼 pairs the water radical 氵 with a phonetic element that hints at a low, pooling place. The image is stagnant, shallow water that collects and becomes mucky — a swamp.
Link 泥 (mud) + 池 (pond) → you get the feel of 沼: a water-filled place that’s muddy, slow, and hard to escape — a swamp.
Forms
沼地 — marshland; boggy ground