貧|ひんhin[1]atamadaka (head-high)

1. nounpoverty; penury; want; need
2. nouninsufficiency; shortage; deficiency

• Synonym貧困ひんこんWrittenWritten word for living in poverty; also used for a lack of content or ideas, as in 「発想の貧困」. 「貧」 on its own is rare and mostly appears in compounds.
• Synonym貧乏びんぼうNeutralThe everyday word for being poor and the most common of this set, e.g. 「貧乏な学生」; 「貧」 is more bookish and mostly a morpheme.
• Synonym困窮こんきゅうWrittenWritten word for life falling into dire straits, as in 「生活に困窮する」; also used for being at a dead end with no way out.
• Synonym窮乏きゅうぼうWrittenWritten word for extreme scarcity of supplies, as in 「戦時中の窮乏」; deeper in degree than 「貧」.
• Related金欠きんけつCasualColloquial slang for being short of money, usually a temporary state; 「貧」 is bookish, covers poverty or lack in general, and mostly appears in compounds.
• Related貧寒ひんかんWrittenWritten word for poor, shabby circumstances; can also describe content as meager. Rarely used.
• Related貧窮ひんきゅうWrittenWritten word for deep poverty and destitution. Rarely used; 「困窮」 is the usual choice.
• Related貧窮化ひんきゅうかWrittenWritten word for gradually becoming poorer, mostly in economics writing.
• Related貧苦ひんくWrittenWritten word for the hardships caused by poverty, as in 「貧苦にあえぐ」.
• Related金欠病きんけつびょうCasualColloquial joke word that likens being short of money to an illness.
• Antonym富とみWrittenWealth, as in 「富を築く」; the direct opposite of the poverty 「貧」 expresses.
• Antonym豊かゆたかNeutralRich and plentiful, whether money or things; the opposite of the insufficiency 「貧」 can express.

Everyday 'poor' is 「貧乏」; written prose prefers 「貧困」. Temporarily short of money is 「金欠」. 「貧」 itself is mostly a morpheme in compounds like 「貧富」「清貧」. For the opposite, wealth, say 「豊か」.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

1. (ひん) 貧まずしいこと。貧乏びんぼう。
2. (ひん) 欠乏けつぼうすること。不足ふそくすること。