thing, object, matter
物 centers on a concrete or abstract item: a thing, an object, or matter in the sense of physical substance or a topic of concern.
thing; object; article; stuff; substance
animal
person; character; figure; personage; man; woman
story; tale; narrative; account; fable; legend
building
genuine article; real thing; real deal
material; substance
living thing; organism; creature; life
the very thing; itself
plant; vegetation
food
luggage; baggage; package
shopping; purchased goods
laws of nature; physical laws
terrific; staggering; tremendous; incredible; extreme
museum
living thing; living creature; animal; life
drink; beverage
drug; medicine
things; everything
present; gift
spurious article; forgery; counterfeit; imitation; sham
cargo; freight
monster
物 combines 牛 (cow) with 勿, which likely contributed the sound. The original sense may have been a variegated or mixed-colored cow, later extended to mean things or objects in general.
A cow 牜 beside a shape 勿 that looks like a wrapped bundle: picture a cow carrying a wrapped thing on its back, so 物 means a thing or object.
For ブツ, imagine a cow bumping into a thing with its head: 'bump' sounds like ブツ, and the cow bumps into an object.