carp
鮒 centers on a specific freshwater fish: the crucian carp. It is a narrow, concrete term for that fish rather than a broad concept.
鮒 combines 魚 (fish) with 付, which likely contributes the sound. The character was created to name a specific fish.
The fish radical 魚 on the left tells you it's a fish. The right side 付 looks like a person attaching a line: imagine a crucian carp being attached to a fishing line.
For ホ, picture a carp leaping out of the water and making a loud 'ho!' sound as it splashes back. The 'ho!' cues ホ while the fish is the crucian carp.
crucian carp (Carassius spp.)
(artificially cultured) Japanese crucian carp
crucian carp caught in midwinter
roundtail paradisefish (Macropodus ocellatus)
Japanese crucian carp (Carassius cuvieri); white crucian carp
Carassius auratus grandoculis (subspecies of goldfish)
person or thing in imminent danger; fish on the chopping board
imminent danger; impending hardship
Carassius buergeri
Carassius langsdorfii
cowardly, good-for-nothing samurai from the countryside
funazushi; old-style fermented crucian carp sushi