How to say “lack” in Chinese
lack, be short of
“Lack” in Chinese is 缺, quē: the meaning, a recording of how it sounds, the characters stroke by stroke and examples.
How to pronounce it
缺 is read quē. The tone is part of the word: with another melody you get another word, or just a jumble of sounds.
How to write it
On the left, 缶 “clay jar”: a jar with a chipped rim. The right part is the same as in 决 jué.
Strokes go in order: top to bottom and left to right, horizontal before vertical. Tap a character to open its page, with the strokes shown large and the words it appears in. To train your hand, print a handwriting sheet for “缺”.
Examples
Sentences from the course lessons with 缺. Tap the sound icon to listen.
- 每个人都有优点和缺点。měigeréndōuyǒuyōudiǎnhéquēdiǎnEveryone has strengths and weaknesses.
- 我们队还缺一个人wǒmenduìháiquēyígerénOur team is still one person short.
- 这个地区水资源短缺zhègedìqūshuǐzīyuánduǎnquēThis area is short of water.
- 灾区现在最缺什么？zāiqūxiànzàizuìquēshénmeWhat does the disaster area need most right now?
- 这款产品存在设计缺陷。zhèkuǎnchǎnpǐncúnzàishèjìquēxiànThis model has a design flaw.
- 这个结论缺乏数据支撑。zhègejiélùnquēfáshùjùzhīchēngThis conclusion isn't backed by data.
More characters by topic — happiness, luck, strength, nature — on the page “Chinese characters with meanings”.
More words from the lesson “What's missing”
Look up another word in the Chinese–English dictionary: in English, in pinyin or in characters.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say “lack” in Chinese?
“Lack” in Chinese is 缺, pinyin quē.
What does 缺 mean?
缺 (quē) means “lack, be short of”.
How do you write 缺?
缺 is 1 character. The stroke order of each one is shown step by step on this page.
How do you pronounce 缺?
缺 is read quē. Tones: quē — first tone. The page has a native speaker recording.
“lack” in the lesson “What's missing”
This word is from the topic “Sports and wrap-up” of HSK 4. In the lesson you hear it in a dialogue, build a sentence with it and say it out loud. Start for free, no sign-up needed.
Start for free