足りる

たりる · tariru · JLPT N4 · verb-ichidan

to be enough

🦶 足 (foot/leg) + りる: enough to stand on your own feet

The kanji 足 means foot, and by extension to add or top up (足す = to add). 足りる is its intransitive partner: things have been added until nothing is lacking. Sound hook: tariru ~ tally-roo, the tally is full, so it is enough.

足 — top 口 (mouth/enclosure) + bottom 止 (foot)
Originally a pictograph of a leg and foot, with the upper square representing the knee or shin and the lower part 止 depicting the foot itself. It primarily means 'foot' and by extension 'sufficient' or 'enough,' a meaning shift likely from the idea of standing firmly or having a solid footing.

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