欠
qiàn
to owe
to lack; (literary) to be deficient in; (bound form) yawn; to raise slightly (a part of one's body)
knife (⺈) + person (人) = yawning, owing, lacking
The character originally depicted a person leaning back with mouth wide open, as in a yawn — that gap or opening extended to the idea of a gap in what is owed or missing. The knife-like stroke above captures the sharp, open shape of a gaping mouth.
他还欠我一百块钱。
tā hái qiàn wǒ yī bǎi kuài qián。
He still owes me one hundred yuan.
这篇文章欠一点儿深度。
zhè piān wén zhāng qiàn yī diǎnr shēn dù。
This article lacks a little depth.
Words with 欠
互不相欠
hù bù xiāng qiàn
see 兩不相欠|两不相欠[liang3 bu4 xiang1 qian4]
两不相欠
liǎng bù xiāng qiàn
to be even
只欠东风
zhǐ qiàn dōng fēng
all we need is an east wind (idiom); lacking only one tiny crucial item
呵欠
hē qiàn
yawn
哈欠
hā qian
yawn
嘴欠
zuǐ qiàn
(coll.) unable to control one's tongue
尾欠
wěi qiàn
balance due
手欠
shǒu qiàn
(coll.) prone to touch things one should keep one's hands off of
打呵欠
dǎ hē qiàn
to yawn
打哈欠
dǎ hā qian
to yawn
拖欠
tuō qiàn
in arrears
欠佳
qiàn jiā
suboptimal