noun
cut end; edge of a page
A physical term for an exposed cut face or edge, especially the cut end of wood or the outer edge of a book's pages.
本の小口に少し汚れがある。
There is a slight stain on the edge of the book's pages.
木材の小口に保護剤を塗った。
I applied a protective coating to the cut end of the wood.
noun, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
small amount; small quantity; small sum
Used for relatively small transactions, orders, lots, loans, or sums of money. Often contrasts with 大口, a large-scale or big-ticket amount.
Antonyms: 大口 (おおぐち)
小口の注文にも対応しています。
We also handle small orders.
小口の寄付を多数集めた。
They collected many small donations.
noun
Rare use for the start of something or a clue that opens the way forward. In modern Japanese, 糸口 is much more usual for this meaning.
この用法では、「小口」は物事の始まりや手がかりを表す。
In this usage, 小口 means the beginning of something or a clue.
noun
dangerous place; jaws of death; tiger's den
Rare or variant use connected with 虎口, literally a tiger's mouth and figuratively a perilous place or deadly situation. This is not the everyday sense of 小口.
See also: 虎口
「小口」を「虎口」の意味で用いる場合、危険な場所や死地を指す。
When 小口 is used in the sense of 虎口, it refers to a dangerous place or the jaws of death.
Related to the dangerous-place sense. 虎口 is the spelling normally associated with 'tiger's den' or 'jaws of death', whereas 小口 is chiefly used for cut edges or small amounts.
The spelling combines 小, 'small', and 口, 'mouth, opening, edge'. This transparently fits the 'small amount' and 'edge/opening' senses, but the exact historical development of the rarer senses is uncertain; the dangerous-place sense is associated with 虎口.