似通う
にかよう · nikayou · JLPT N1 · verb-godan
to resemble closely
似 (resemble) + 通う (commute, pass back and forth): looks alike as if traffic runs between them
似 means resemble, and 通う means to travel regularly along a route. Two things that keep passing back and forth between each other end up looking closely alike.
通 — 辵 (辶) walk + 甬 yǒng (phonetic)
通 is a semantic-phonetic compound. The 辶 (chuò) component means 'walk' or 'movement', giving the meaning of going through or passing. 甬 (yǒng), originally depicting a hanging bell or a path, supplies the sound. Together they convey 'to pass through, communicate, connect'.