How to say 'Difficult' in Japanese | 難い

word

Meaning

Difficult

Reading

Kanji

難Difficult

Explanation

The Japanese suffix '難い (がたい)' is used to express that something is difficult or hard to do. It is often attached to the stem of verbs to convey that the action is challenging or nearly impossible to achieve. This suffix carries a nuance of something being not just difficult, but also rare or unlikely. For example: it's hard to believe「信じがたい」(しんじがたい). It's difficult to refuse「断りがたい」(ことわりがたい). Note that '難い (がたい)' is typically used in written or formal contexts, and it is less common in casual conversation.

Part Of Speech

suffix

Kanji JLPT

Kanji Grade

Frequency

591

Composition

kanji-hiragana

Handwriting