拙
bungling, clumsy, unskillful
Readings
On'yomi
- セツ
Kun'yomi
- つたな.い
Meaning
拙 centers on a lack of skill or grace: being clumsy, bungling, or unskillful in action or expression.
Most common words using 拙
20 of 31- 拙いつたない
poor-quality; shoddy; crude
- 拙者せっしゃ
I; me
- 稚拙ちせつ
unskillful; childish; immature; naive; artless; clumsy; crude
- 拙速せっそく
rough-and-ready; knocked-up; hasty; slipshod; slapdash
- 拙著せっちょ
my book; my (humble) work; a little thing of mine
- 拙劣せつれつ
clumsy; unskillful
- 拙作せっさく
poor work; humble reference to one's own work
- 巧拙こうせつ
skill; workmanship; dexterity; quality
- 拙守せっしゅ
poor defense; poor defence
- 古拙こせつ
artless but attractive in a quaint sense
- 巧と拙こうとせつ
skillfulness and clumsiness
- 巧詐は拙誠に如かずこうさはせっせいにしかず
better shoddy and sincere than clever and deceptive
- 巧遅は拙速に如かずこうちはせっそくにしかず
it's better to be rough and ready than slow and elaborate
- 巧遅拙速こうちせっそく
better being rough and ready than slow and elaborate; better being brisk and sharp than slow and prudent
- 拙せつ
poor; unskillful; clumsy
- 拙僧せっそう
I, as a mere priest; this humble servant of Buddha
- 拙句せっく
unskilled haiku poem; clumsy haiku
- 拙宅せったく
one's home; one's humble abode
- 拙悪せつあく
poor (tasting); low quality; bad situation
- 拙意せつい
my thoughts; my opinions; my feelings
Study
Etymology
拙 combines 扌 (hand) with 出 (exit, come out), suggesting a hand that comes out awkwardly or produces clumsy work. The exact historical development is uncertain, but the component combination is a plausible phono-semantic structure.
Meaning mnemonic
A hand 扌 trying to push something out 出 but fumbling: the result is clumsy and unskillful.
Reading mnemonic
For セツ, imagine a clumsy person trying to set a table but knocking everything over: set -> セツ, and the hand 扌 makes a mess.