The kanji 渡 primarily means "to cross," "to ferry," "to pass over," or "to traverse." It implies movement from one side to another, often across a body of water or a physical barrier. It suggests a transition or a change of position.

・On-yomi (音読み): ト (to) ・Kun-yomi (訓読み): 渡（わた）る (wata(ru) - to cross, to go across); 渡（わた）す (wata(su) - to hand over, to pass over)

⚫︎ 橋を渡（わた）る Translation: To cross a bridge. ⚫︎ 日本に渡（わた）る Translation: To go to Japan. ⚫︎ 引（ひ）き渡（わた）す Translation: To hand over (something).

The kanji 渡 is a phono-semantic compound (形声文字 - keisei moji). The left side is the radical 氵（さんずい - sanzui), which represents "water." The right side is 度（ド - do, meaning "degree," "extent," or "to measure"). The original meaning of 度 is related to the idea of measuring or traversing a distance. Therefore, 渡 combines the water radical with an element suggesting measurement or passing, creating the meaning of "to cross water" or "to ferry."