わずか

• 読み: わずか
• ローマ字: wazuka
• 発音: /wa.zɯ.ka/

意味

A little; a few; slight; meagre; tiny. Describes a very small amount or degree.

Functions as a na-adjective, no-adjective, and adverb. As an adverb: わずか三日で (in only three days). As a modifier: わずかな希望 (faint hope). Emphasises how surprisingly small an amount is. Slightly more formal than ちょっと or 少し. Often paired with numbers to stress their smallness.

例文

1. わずか一年で日本語がとても上手になりました。
2. 試験にわずかな差で不合格になった。
3. 財布にはわずかなお金しか残っていない。

使い方ガイド

場面: emphasis, numbers, comparisons

トーン: neutral

起源と歴史

Originally written 僅か, from the kanji 僅 (kin, merely/slightly). The kanji combines 亻 (person) with 堇 (a plant), suggesting something as small as a single herb — a tiny amount.

文化的背景

時代: Ancient

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal