少し
すこし · sukoshi · JLPT N5 · adverb
few
🤏 sukoshi sounds like scotch-y: just a little splash of scotch
The kanji 少 means few or small in amount, and し is the kana tail that makes it an adverb. Say it fast and it is nearly skoshi, which is where the American English slang skosh (a tiny bit) comes from.
少 — 小 (small) + 丿 (slash stroke)
Originally a pictograph showing four small dots or grains, suggesting 'few' or 'small in quantity'. Over time it became distinguished from 小 (small) by adding a downward stroke. The core meaning shifted toward 'few' or 'little in number', while 小 kept the sense of physical smallness.