乏 — Destitution / Scarce / Limited

Master (高手)ぼう, とぼ, とも

Radical ⼃ · radical 4 The building block this kanji is filed under

乏 (readings: ぼう, とぼ, とも; Japanese kanji) means “Destitution / Scarce / Limited”. It is a Jōyō kanji taught in Japanese secondary school (junior & senior high) — the 高手 · Master tier beyond the grade 1–6 Kyōiku set, and appears in words such as 貧乏 (poverty).

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What does 乏 mean?

Full details, readings & example

Kanji	乏
Meaning	Destitution / Scarce / Limited
Readings	ぼう, とぼ, とも
Grade	Master (高手 · secondary school)
Curriculum	Jōyō kanji · Japanese secondary school (JLPT N1–N2)
Example	貧乏 (poverty)

How to read 乏

乏 is read ぼう or とぼ or とも depending on the word.

Words with 乏

貧乏nghèo túng

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Updated: 2026-07-22