穴埋め

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 穴埋め is read as あなうめ and is a noun and する verb for filling a literal hole or covering a vacancy, scheduling gap, or financial shortfall.
• Basic usage: Covering for an absent worker appears in 同僚の穴埋め, while making up a deficit appears in 赤字の穴埋め.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Literal and figurative gaps
  • It applies not only to a physical hole but also to a shortage created in staffing, schedules, or finances.
• Difference from 補充
  • 補充 generally means replenishing an insufficient quantity, whereas 穴埋め emphasizes covering a gap or loss that has arisen.