わかりにくい

わ

か

り

に

く

い

Common word

Meanings

1

i-adjective

hard to understand; incomprehensible; unintelligible

usually written using kana alone

Describes something that is difficult to grasp, follow, or make sense of; can refer to explanations, instructions, behavior, or situations.

この説せつ明めいは分わかりにくい。
This explanation is hard to understand.

彼かれの態たい度どは分わかりにくい。

His attitude is difficult to figure out.

Written forms

分わかりにくい
Standard kanji-kana spelling; the most common written form.
分わかり難にくい
Rare kanji form using 難い; not commonly used.
判わかりにくい
Rare variant using 判る; may emphasize 'to judge/understand' nuance.
解わかりにくい
Rare variant using 解る; may emphasize 'to comprehend/solve' nuance.
判わかり難にくい
Very rare combination; essentially unused in modern Japanese.
解わかり難にくい
Very rare combination; essentially unused in modern Japanese.
分わかり悪にくい
Rare alternative using 悪い; not standard.

Kanji

分part, minute of time, segment
難difficult, impossible, trouble
判judgement, judgment, signature
解

Similar words

難むずかしい
Means 'difficult' in a general sense (problem, task, person). 分かりにくい specifically means 'hard to understand/comprehend'.
不ふ明めい瞭りょう
More formal and often used for unclear speech, writing, or images. 分かりにくい is more colloquial and broader.

Etymology

Compound of the verb 分かる (wakaru, 'to understand') in its continuative form 分かり (wakari) + the adjective-forming suffix にくい (nikui, 'difficult to do'). The suffix attaches to the masu-stem of verbs to express difficulty in performing the action.

unravel, notes, key

悪bad, vice, rascal