聞ききにくい

き

に

く

い

Meanings

i-adjective

difficult to hear; indistinct

Describes sounds or speech that are hard to make out, often due to volume, clarity, or background noise.

後うしろの席せきだと先せん生せいの声こえが聞ききにくい。
It's hard to hear the teacher's voice from the back seats.
電でん話わの音おと

が

悪わる

く

て

、

相あい

手て

の

話はなし

が

聞き

き

にくかっ

た

。

The phone connection was bad, so it was difficult to hear what the other person was saying.

i-adjective

hesitating to ask; awkward to ask

Expresses reluctance to ask a question because it might be embarrassing, intrusive, or socially awkward.

給きゅう料りょうのことはちょっと聞ききにくい。
It's a bit awkward to ask about salary.
彼かの女じょに年ねん齢れいを聞きくのは聞ききにくい。
It's awkward to ask her age.

i-adjective

unpleasant to hear; painful to listen to

Used when hearing something causes emotional discomfort, such as harsh criticism, bad news, or an unpleasant truth.

彼かれの愚ぐ痴ちは聞ききにくい。
His complaints are unpleasant to listen to.
その話はなしはあまりにも悲かなしくて聞ききにくかった。
That story was so sad it was painful to hear.

Written forms

聞ききにくい
Standard kanji-kana spelling; the most common written form.
聞きき難にくい
Alternative kanji spelling using 難い for 'difficult'; less common but still seen.
聞きき悪にくい
Rare kanji spelling using 悪い; may be encountered but not standard.

Kanji

聞hear, ask, listen
難difficult, impossible, trouble
悪bad, vice, rascal

Similar words

聞ききやすい
Antonym meaning 'easy to hear' or 'easy to ask'; 聞きにくい focuses on difficulty or reluctance.
言いいにくい
Means 'difficult to say' or 'awkward to say'; 聞きにくい is about hearing or asking, not speaking.

Etymology

Compound of 聞き (stem of 聞く 'to hear, to ask') + にくい (auxiliary adjective meaning 'difficult to do'). The combination yields 'difficult to hear/ask', with extended nuances of reluctance or unpleasantness.