a little (amount)

(small size) + (one/line radical)
★★★★★
4 strokes
PK SYMBOLIC ILL PAIR
HOW TO TELL 小さい AND 少し APART-- Chisai (小)can be thought of as a dude with droopy sad eyes and a big nose. He's sad because he's so short. The ladies, they do not choose him so much.

Sukoshi is the same guy, but he's smiling A SMALL AMOUNT(少). He's a small amount of happy. Because your dad sent him flowers.

Onyomi

SHOU

SHOW me a little smile!

Mnemonic

Kunyomi

すこ*し more positive than the the other one . . .more like, "do you want milk in your coffee?" "Just a little!"
★★★★★
すく*ない just a little - not enough. (Not necessarily a bad meaning: "The risks are negligible.")
★★★★★

Jukugo

少女(しょうじょ)

young girl ★★★★☆
(a little (amount)) + (woman) = 少女 (young girl)

young girl - usually 5- 15 years old.

少年(しょうねん)

young boy ★★★★☆
(a little (amount)) + (year) = 少年 (young boy)

young boy- usually 5- 15 years old.

少数(しょうすう)

minority ★★☆☆☆
(a little (amount)) + (integer, to count) = 少数 (minority)

Lookalikes

Meaning Hint Radical
small size NO SMILING
a little (amount) SMILING

Chisai (小)can be thought of as a dude with droopy sad eyes and a big nose. He's sad because he's so small. The ladies, they do not choose him so much. Sukoshi is the same guy, but he's smiling a little bit(少). He's a little bit happy.

Because your dad sent him flowers.

Used In

Synonyms

rare
珍しい    まれ 希少な    妙に   
scanty, meager
乏しい    貧しい    少ない   
slowly, gradually
段々    少しずつ    じょじょ 次代に