欠く · godan verb (-ku)
| Form | Positive | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| Dictionary | 欠く | 欠かない |
| Polite | 欠きます | 欠きません |
| Past polite | 欠きました | 欠きませんでした |
| Past | 欠いた | 欠かなかった |
| Te-form | 欠いて | 欠かないで |
| Desire | 欠きたい | 欠きたくない |
| Potential | 欠ける | 欠けない |
| Passive | 欠かれる | 欠かれない |
| Causative | 欠かせる | 欠かせない |
| Causative passive | 欠かせられるalso 欠かされる | 欠かせられないalso 欠かされない |
| Volitional | 欠こう | |
| Polite volitional | 欠きましょう | |
| Imperative | 欠け | 欠くな |
| Conditional | 欠けば | 欠かなければ |
| Tara conditional | 欠いたら | 欠かなかったら |
godan verb (-ku), transitive verb
Used for physically damaging an object by chipping, nicking, or cracking it. Often appears with objects like 茶碗, 皿, or 爪.
茶碗のふちを欠いてしまった。
I chipped the rim of the teacup.
I fell and chipped my front tooth.
godan verb (-ku), transitive verb
Used for abstract qualities, conditions, or necessary elements that are absent or insufficient. Common in patterns like ～を欠く, ～に欠ける (intransitive counterpart), and ～を欠かさない.
His explanation lacks persuasiveness.
You should avoid actions that lack common sense.
I accidentally chipped a bit off the rim of the vase.
His explanation lacked concreteness.
欠く means 'to lack' or 'to be missing something,' focusing on the absence of a quality, while 欠かす is about failing to perform a habitual action or going without something and is almost always used in the negative.
cut out; notch
break off; knock off · create a false eye by sacrificing a stone (go)