Common word› Freq. Frequency Top 2,000 Conjugation にくい · i-adjective
Form Positive Negative Dictionary にくい にくくない Polite にくいです にくくないです also にくくありません Past polite にくかったです にくくなかったです also にくくありませんでした Past にくかった にくくなかった Te-form にくくて にくくなくて Adverbial にくく Conditional にくければ にくくなければ Tara conditional にくかったら にくくなかったら
Usage patterns 分わ かり 〈 形けい 容よう 詞し 〉 hard to understand
This instruction manual is hard to understand.
読よ み 〈 形けい 容よう 詞し 〉 hard to read
His handwriting is hard to read.
言い い 〈 形けい 容よう 詞し 〉 hard to say (something delicate)
It's hard to say the truth.
使つか い 〈 形けい 容よう 詞し 〉 hard to use
Kanji 難 difficult, impossible, trouble Related words にくい expresses objective or physical difficulty in doing something, while づらい often points to emotional or personal discomfort in doing it.
にくい is the everyday, neutral suffix for 'hard to do', while がたい is more formal and literary, appearing in set phrases like 信じがたい .
にくい describes practical or physical difficulty in doing something, while 難い (がたい ) expresses a stronger, often emotional or psychological impossibility.
Don't confuse with 難い is a verb-stem suffix meaning 'difficult to (do)' as in 食べにくい , while 憎い is a standalone adjective meaning 'hateful'; they share the same reading but are unrelated in meaning.
難 (なん ) is a noun meaning difficulty or trouble used in compounds, while 難い (にくい ) is an i-adjective suffix attached to a verb stem to mean 'hard to ~' (食べにくい ).
Word family hard to do; difficult to do
hard to do; difficult; awkward; tricky
difficult to explain; hard to put into words
Written forms にくい Usage 100%
Usually written in kana. The kanji form 難い is rare.
難にく い Usage <1%
rarely-used kanji form
Rare kanji form; learners should use kana.
Etymology Derived from the adjective 難い (にくい ) meaning 'difficult', which itself comes from classical Japanese. The suffix usage developed from the adjective.
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