Kanji: 足りるの漢字 / 当て字。

足りるの漢字は、どうして足のと同じだかな。　Why does "to suffice" use the kanji for "leg"? ヘンシャーの漢字についての本によると、。。。。でもちょっと待って、まずヘンシャーの本を探す。。。。

見つけた。　According to Henshall先生, tariru (to suffice, 足りる) and ashi ([lower] leg/foot, 足) use the same kanji because ashi was picked up for phonetic reasons and also (as an intact leg) may have suggested ability. Not so satisfying. Not sure whether this qualifies as ateji, kanji used phonetically rather than semantically -- like when I tried to make the kanji 本当 (root, striking right on) into "truth" through meanings -- reasonable, I think! -- when in fact it's probably to at least some degree phonetic match, ateji. Maybe that's a classic example, because 当　is apparently also the a in ateji (当て字). でも実は「足りる」の漢字の説明はちょっと足らないと思う。