Japanese symbol for “lacking”
乏しい
とぼしい
Romaji: toboshii
meagre; meager; scarce; limited
In Japanese, lacking is 乏しい, read とぼしい (toboshii).
Before using these characters for a tattoo, check them with a native speaker. Dictionary words often have several meanings, and the right choice depends on context.
Meanings
- adj-i meagre; meager; scarce; limited; destitute; hard up
Written forms: 乏しい. Readings: とぼしい、ともしい.
Kanji and stroke order
Other Japanese words for “lacking”
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 貧しい | まずしい mazushii | lacking (quantity and quality-wise); poor; scanty |
| 寂しい | さびしい sabishii | lacking; wanting; insufficient |
| 没 | ぼつ botsu | lacking; without |
| 希薄 | きはく kihaku | lacking (enthusiasm, consideration, substance, etc.); insubstantial; deficient |
| 無き | なき naki | -less; lacking; non-existing |
Related words
Words that share a kanji.
| Word | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 貧乏 | びんぼう binbou | poverty-stricken; destitute; poor |
| 欠乏 | けつぼう ketsubou | deficiency; insufficiency; shortage |
| 窮乏 | きゅうぼう kyuubou | poverty; destitution; privation |
| 貧乏人 | びんぼうにん binbounin | poor person; the poor |
| 貧乏神 | びんぼうがみ binbougami | god of poverty |
See also: Chinese symbol for “lacking”.
Data: JMdict (CC BY-SA 4.0); KANJIDIC2 (CC BY-SA 4.0); KanjiVG (CC BY-SA 3.0); wordfreq (CC BY-SA 4.0 (data)). Retrieved 2026-10-22.
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