少ない・すくない (few/little)

• Reading: すくない
• Romaji: sukunai
• Formation: Noun + が + 少ない / 少ない + Noun (relative clause)
• Kanji breakdown: 少 (shō/suku) = few, little

Meaning

An い-adjective meaning 'few,' 'little,' or 'scarce.' It describes a small quantity or number of something and, like 多い, is primarily used as a predicate rather than a direct noun modifier.

Like its counterpart 多い, 少ない shares the grammatical restriction against direct noun modification. You generally cannot say 少ない人 to mean 'few people' — instead use 少数の人, 人が少ない, or a relative clause 人が少ない場所 (a place with few people). The adverbial form 少なく is used before verbs to mean 'in small amounts.' 少ない frequently appears in contrast with 多い: 東京は人が多いが、この村は人が少ない. It is commonly used for describing shortages, sparse populations, or limited availability. Note that 少し (a little) is a related adverb but functions differently — it modifies verbs and adjectives directly.

Examples

1. この町は店が少ない。 This town has few shops.
2. 今月は休みが少ないです。 There are few days off this month.
3. 彼は友達が少ないらしい。 He apparently has few friends.

Usage Guide

Context: spoken, written, everyday

Tone: descriptive

Do Say

• この時間は電車が少ない。
• 今年は台風が少ないです。
• 人が少ない場所でゆっくりしたい。

Don't Say

• 少ない学生が来ました。(Direct noun modification — use 少数の学生 or 学生が少ない) → 来た学生が少なかった。
• 水は少ないだ。(Adding だ after an い-adjective — 少ない does not take だ) → 水は少ない。

Origin & History

An ancient Japanese adjective. The kanji 少 shows a small amount being cut away, representing scarcity. It has expressed the concept of smallness in number since the earliest Japanese texts.

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal