缺口

• Pinyin: quē kǒu
• Hanzi breakdown: 缺 = 缶 + 夬 (jar + missing piece — a container with a piece gone); 口 = 口 (opening/mouth)

Meaning

A gap, breach, or notch; a missing section in something. Figuratively: a shortfall or deficit between supply and demand or between what is needed and what is available.

In infrastructure and engineering, refers to a physical breach (e.g. in a wall, levee, or blade). In economics and planning, refers to a supply-demand shortfall. 填补缺口 (fill the gap) is a common phrase across both literal and figurative senses.

Examples

1. 强烈的地震在古城墙上撕开了一道无法修复的缺口。 The powerful earthquake tore an irreparable breach in the ancient city wall.
2. 目前市场上高端养老服务存在明显的供给缺口，亟待相关政策引导投资填补。 There is currently a clear supply gap in high-end eldercare services, and policy guidance is urgently needed to steer investment to fill it.
3. 刀刃上出现了一个小缺口，需要重新打磨才能恢复正常切削性能。 There’s a small nick in the blade; it needs to be sharpened again to restore normal cutting performance.

Usage Guide

Context: engineering, economics, logistics, infrastructure

Tone: neutral

Do Say

• 政府出台了一系列财政措施，旨在填补基础教育资源长期存在的地区分配缺口。(The government introduced a series of fiscal measures aimed at filling the long-standing regional distribution gap in basic education resources.)
• 洪水冲开了堤坝上的一处缺口，大量积水随即涌入下游农田，造成严重损失。(Floodwaters burst open a gap in the embankment, and large volumes of water immediately surged into downstream farmland, causing severe damage.)

Don't Say

• 他的知识有一个缺口 — use 他的知识存在空白 or 他在这方面的知识有所欠缺; 缺口 describes a physical or quantitative gap, not a knowledge gap

Origin & History

缺 (lacking/missing) + 口 (opening/mouth) — a missing section that forms an opening or void

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal