Word
不足
Meaning in Englishinsufficiency, shortage
Animated kanji stroke order
Sentence
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Word context
What it means
What does 不足 mean? It designates a state in which something is not enough to meet needs or expectations; used to describe shortages of resources, time, capacity, or supply in daily life and formal contexts.
Main meanings
- insufficiency or shortage of resources, time, money, or supplies
- deficiency in capacity, skills, or capabilities within a system or organization
- in nutrition or medicine, a deficiency of a nutrient or vitamin
How to use it
Used as a noun in both formal and everyday speech to indicate a shortfall; common in business, economics, education, and government contexts; often appears in compounds such as 不足する, 不足分, 不足感, and in phrases describing needs not being met.
Variants and close terms
- 欠乏 (kettou): deficiency
- 充足 (juusoku): sufficiency
- 不十分 (fujūbun): insufficient
- 不足感 (fusokukan): sense of insufficiency
Composition
- 不: negation or 'not'
- 足: foot or 'enough'; here contributes the sense of sufficiency or lack
- Overall: together they form a compound meaning 'not enough' or 'shortage'
Word class
Noun (名詞)
Word
Related words by kanji and components
N1
駆け足
kakeashi
running fast, double time
N1
足し算
tashizan
addition
N1
裸足
hadashi
barefoot
N1
不意
fui
sudden, abrupt, unexpected
N1
不可欠
fukaketsu
indispensable, essential
N1
不吉
fukitsu
ominous, sinister, bad luck, ill omen
N1
不況
fukyou
recession, depression, slump
N1
不景気
fukeiki
business recession, hard times, depression
N1
不在
fuzai
absence
Kanji