染める
そめる · someru · JLPT N1 · verb-ichidan
to dye
🎨 染める = sounds like 'so-meru': 'so, mess it up' with color; to dye a fabric by soaking it in color
染 (shimeru-ish root) is the kanji for dyeing cloth; 染める is the transitive verb: someone dyes something. Pair it with 染まる (intransitive: to become dyed).
染 — water 氵 + nine 九 + wood 木
染 depicts the dyeing process: 氵 (water) for the dye liquid, 木 (wood) for plant-based dyestuffs, and 九 (nine) suggesting repeated dippings to deepen the color. Originally meaning 'to dye cloth,' it later extended to figurative senses like 'to be influenced' or 'to contract' (as in illness).