KanjiJLPT N2
Step On

step, trample, carry through, appraise, evade payment

Mnemonic

Your leg plunges into a shallow water puddle reflecting the blazing sun. You step on it with a satisfying stomp! Grinning, you keep going—leg slamming every sun-lit puddle, sending water flying in glittering arcs across the pavement.
Additional thoughts
Picture yourself as a kid after a rainstorm, deliberately stomping every sunny puddle. Leg action + water + sun reflection = the joy of stepping on puddles.
Quick recall
Your leg stomps a sun-lit water puddle as you step on every one in sight.

Details

The keyword for 踏 is step on. This kanji conveys the action of placing one's foot down onto something, whether literally walking upon a surface or figuratively treading on something. It encompasses the ideas of trampling, stamping, and firmly planting one's feet on the ground. By extension, it can also refer to going through a process or following established procedures, as in "stepping through" the necessary stages of something.
On'yomi
とう
Kun'yomi
ふ.む、ふ.まえる