linen, cloth, spread, distribute
布 centers on a piece of fabric and the action of laying it out: linen or cloth, and by extension spreading or distributing something over an area.
布 combines 巾 (cloth) with a top element that likely originated as a phonetic or semantic component related to spreading. The exact historical development of the top part is uncertain.
The cloth radical 巾 is draped below a hand-like top, as if someone is spreading a linen cloth over a surface.
For フ, imagine a piece of cloth fluttering in the wind: the sound 'fu' (like a puff of air) matches the reading フ and the image of fabric spreading out.
wallet; purse; coin purse; billfold; pocketbook
distribution
futon; Japanese bedding consisting of a mattress and a duvet
cloth; fabric; material; textile
blanket
distribution
kombu (usu. Saccharina japonica); konbu; kelp; any edible species from the family Laminariaceae
propagation (e.g. a religion); proselytizing; missionary work
edict; ordinance; proclamation
wakame (species of edible brown seaweed, Undaria pinnatifida)
distribution; circulation
dissemination; scattering; sprinkling; spraying
zabuton; flat floor cushion used when sitting or kneeling; usu. rectangular
hemp cloth; linen
battle formation
strategic arrangement of go stones at the beginning of a game; opening moves
official proclamation; announcement; promulgation (e.g. of regulations)
application (of ointment, etc.)
alms-giving; charity
fabric; cloth; material
futon (laid on the floor); (Japanese) mattress; underquilt; sleeping mat
dish towel; tea towel; dishcloth
cotton cloth; cotton material
silk; silk cloth