Phonetic family — once you know
莫 gives the sound, the whole rhyme cluster opens up:
摸 (touch),
馍 (steamed bun),
膜 (membrane),
漠 (desert),
模 itself. The left-side radical tells you the meaning category — wood (
木) for the wooden mould of
模, water for the dry sand of
漠, hand for the touching of
摸.
