“〜ni taru・ni tarinai”: Worthy Of / Sufficient To 〜 [JLPT N1]

Content by NTJ Kuma · Nihongo to Japan editorial team · Updated July 27, 2026

Expressing that something is qualified for or worth a certain treatment

「尊敬に足る人物」 — a literary appraisal: worthy of, deserving (to ～)

Writing a book review or a profile, to say solemnly “worthy of (respect／trust), deserving,” Japanese has the literary 「に足る」 — 「彼は尊敬に足る人物だ (he is a person worthy of respect).」 「〜に足る（たる）」 = worthy of, deserving (to ～). This guide focuses on the easiest traps — “the particle is fixed as に (don't confuse it with 足りない's が),” 「取るに足りない (trifling),」 “not for everyday trivia” — cross-referencing the same-form 〈に足る〉.

Core: worthy of, deserving (to ～)

「〜に足る」 = (having enough value／standing) worthy of doing ～, deserving ～:

• 信頼に足る人物 (a person worthy of trust).
• 尊敬に足る業績 (achievements worthy of respect).
• 一読に足る (worth a read).

Feel: 「足る (たる)」 is the classical form of the verb 「足りる,」 and 「Aに足る」 = “enough for A, up to A, worthy of A.” It mostly attaches to “positive-appraisal action nouns or verbs” like 信頼・尊敬・満足・一読・記憶・特筆, meaning “(the object) has enough value, standing — it is up to ～.” It leans written, literary, solemn, mostly for profiles, book reviews, formal discourse, more refined and classical than N2's 「に値する.」 Adnominal attaches straight to a noun (信頼に足る人物). The negative has a fixed idiom 「取るに足りない (trifling, not worth mentioning).」 In English: worthy of ～, up to ～, deserving of ～. (This site also has a synonymous 〈に足る〉 to cross-check.)

Attachment rules

Examples in use

• 彼は全幅の信頼を置くに足る人物だ。(He is a person worthy of complete trust.)
• この論文は特筆するに足る成果を示した。(This paper showed results worth special mention.)
• 満足に足る結果が得られた。(A result up to satisfaction was obtained.)
• そんなことは取るに足りない些細な問題だ。(That's a trifling, trivial matter.)
• 後世に伝えるに足る名作である。(It is a masterpiece worth passing to later generations.)

⚠️ Where learners slip up

① The particle is fixed as 「に」 — don't confuse it with 「足りない (be insufficient)」's 「が.」 This is the key trap. 「に足る (worthy of, deserving)」 fixes the particle as 「に」: 信頼に足る, 尊敬に足る, 一読に足る — you can't say 「信頼が足る.」 Whereas 「足りる／足りない (quantity is enough／insufficient)」 uses 「が」 and is about “amount”: お金が足りない (not enough money), 時間が足りる (enough time). The two differ in meaning and particle: 「(noun) に 足る」 = “worthy of, deserving (that noun)” (value, standing); 「(noun) が 足りる／足りない」 = “(amount) is／isn't enough” (quantity). Test: to say “worthy of ～, deserving ～” → (noun) に 足る; to say “is (amount) enough” → (noun) が 足りる／足りない. Don't mis-say 「信頼に足る (worthy of trust)」 as 「信頼が足る.」

② 「取るに足りない」 is a fixed idiom meaning “trifling.” The negative has a high-frequency fixed idiom 「取るに足りない／取るに足らない」 = “trifling, not worth mentioning, negligible” — literally “not even up to picking up (mentioning),” extended to “too small to bother with”: 取るに足りない問題 (a trifling problem), 取るに足りない存在 (a negligible presence). It's the fixed negative of 「に足る,」 to learn as a set. Test: to say “trifling, not worth mentioning” → 取るに足りない (a set idiom).

③ Only for objects that truly deserve formal appraisal; not for everyday trivia. 「に足る」 is a literary, solemn appraisal expression, fit only for “objects that truly warrant weighty appraisal” — people (character, ability, trust), works, discourse, achievements, evidence: 信頼に足る人物, 尊敬に足る業績, 一読に足る名著. For everyday trivia (tasty or not, fun or not), 「に足る」 sounds stilted, unnatural — to say “this ramen is worth trying,” everyday uses 食べる価値がある, not 食べるに足る (too bookish). Test: weighty appraisal of character, ability, works, discourse → に足る (solemn); everyday “worth it” → use 価値がある.

④ The difference from 「に値する (N2)」 — register, archaism. Both mean “worthy of,” nearly identical, differing in register, archaism. 「に値する」 (N2) = “worthy of ～,” more general, usable in writing and speech, attaching more broadly (一見に値する = worth a look, 称賛に値する = worthy of praise; see 〈に値する〉). 「に足る」 = “worthy of ～, deserving ～,” more literary, classical, solemn, mostly for profiles, book reviews, formal discourse, with archaic weight. Difference: に値する = worthy of (general, writing and speech, N2); に足る = worthy of, deserving (more literary, solemn, classical, N1). Test: to generally say “worthy of” → に値する (general); to solemnly, elegantly appraise a person／work → に足る (archaic). Also note 「に過ぎない (merely)」 is the opposite — don't mix it up (see 〈に過ぎない〉).

🔄 Compare: に足る／に値する／に堪える／取るに足りない

💡 How to remember this

「〜に足る」 is a weighty literary expression, common in book reviews and profiles — 「尊敬に足る人物」「一読に足る名著」 carry a solemn, weighty sense of appraisal in a single phrase. Remember three things: ① the particle is fixed as 「に」 (信頼に足る; don't confuse it with 「が足りない」 = “not enough”); ② the fixed negative idiom 「取るに足りない」 = trifling; ③ save it for objects that truly warrant weighty appraisal (people, works, discourse) — for everyday “worth it,” 「価値がある」 is fine. Against N2's 「に値する,」 「に足る」 is more literary, classical, solemn — for elegant appraisal of a person or work, 「に足る」 has the most flavor; for general settings, 「に値する」 rolls off more easily.

❓ Common questions

Q: What's the difference between 「信頼に足る」 and 「信頼が足りない」? Why different particles?

Completely different — the easiest trap. 「信頼に足る」 = worthy of trust, deserving to be trusted: the particle is 「に,」 and 「に足る」 is the literary expression “worthy of ～, deserving ～,” about “value, standing” — 「信頼に足る人物」 = “a person worthy of (people's) trust, up to being trusted” (having that value, standing). 「信頼が足りない」 = trust (in amount) is insufficient: the particle is 「が,」 and 「足りない」 is the negative of 「足りる (quantity is enough),」 about “amount” — 「信頼が足りない」 = “trust (as a thing, in amount) is insufficient” (e.g. there's not enough trust between two people). Why different particles? Because they're two different words: 「(noun) に 足る」 is a literary idiom (worthy of, deserving, particle fixed に); 「(noun) が 足りる／足りない」 is the ordinary use of the verb 「足りる」 (is the amount enough, particle が). Difference: 「に足る」 = worthy of, deserving (value, standing, uses に); 「が足りない」 = (amount) insufficient (quantity, uses が). Test: to say “worthy of ～, up to ～” → (noun) に 足る; to say “(amount) is insufficient” → (noun) が 足りない. So “worthy of trust” is 「信頼に足る,」 not 「信頼が足る.」

Q: What does 「取るに足りない」 mean? Is it related to 「に足る」?

Yes — it's the fixed negative idiom of 「に足る.」 「取るに足りない（取るに足らない）」 = trifling, not worth mentioning, negligible: literally “not even ‘up to (足りない)' picking up (mentioning, 取る),” extended to “too small to bother with, negligible”: 取るに足りない問題 (a trifling problem), 取るに足りない存在 (a negligible presence), そんなミスは取るに足りない (a slip like that isn't worth mentioning). It's the negative 「(verb) に足りない (not worth ～)」 of 「(verb) に足る (worth ～)」 plus 「取る (pick up, mention),」 forming a fixed idiom that as a set means “trifling,” with a dismissive, contemptuous tone. Test: to say “trifling, not worth mentioning, negligible” → 取るに足りない (a set idiom, don't split it). ⚠️Note: affirmative 「に足る」 is “worthy of, deserving” (positive appraisal), while the negative idiom 「取るに足りない」 is “trifling” (belittling) — one positive, one negative; keep them straight.

🖊️ Practice Questions (5)

Q1. 「彼は、リーダーとして信頼___人物だ。」(worthy of trust)

(A) に足る　(B) に過ぎない　(C) を禁じ得ない　(D) に堪えない

Q2. 「に足る」とよく接するのは?

(A) 信頼・尊敬・満足・一読　(B) 食べる・飲む　(C) 走る・歩く　(D) 開ける・閉める

Q3. 「尊敬に足る先生」の意味は?

(A) A teacher worthy of respect

(B) Not worthy of respect

(C) No need to respect

(D) A disliked teacher

Q4. 「に足る」の意味は?

(A) Worthy of / sufficient to ~ (qualified)

(B) Merely/nothing but

(C) Have no choice but to

(D) Although ~, yet

Q5. 接法が正しいのは?

(A) 満足に足る出来だ。　(B) 満足をに足る。

(C) 満足してに足る。　(D) 満足だに足る。

Answer Explanations

1. (A) に足る ── Worthy of trust.

2. (A) ── Often attaches to 信頼・尊敬・満足・一読.

3. (A) ── A teacher worthy of respect.

4. (A) ── Worthy of / sufficient to (qualified).

5. (A) ── 「満足に足る出来」 is correct.