Video
Let’s watch this short video for a quick overview.
Source: gokigen japanese official YouTube Channel
Introduction
Want to say “These sneakers are hard to put on” or “That company was hard to work at”? Use V-stem + にくい, a handy pattern that describes tasks that are difficult because of the object, situation, or environment (not your ability). This lesson pairs with this grammar: V-stem + やすい (easy to do ~).
1. Structure & Meaning
Pattern: V-stem + にくい
Meaning: “hard/difficult to V”
- このスニーカーは はきにくいです。
These sneakers are hard to put on. - あの会社の支店は 働きにくかったです。
That company branch was hard to work at.
The Japanese grammar pattern V-stem + にくい is used to express that an action is “hard to do” or “difficult to do.” It describes the difficulty or challenge associated with performing a particular action.
2. How to Form It
- Take the ます-form, drop ます → V-stem
- Add にくい
| Dictionary | ます-form | Stem | V-stem + にくい |
|---|---|---|---|
| 読む (to read) | 読みます | 読み | 読みにくい (hard to read) |
| 使う (to use) | 使います | 使い | 使いにくい (hard to use) |
| 話す (to speak) | 話します | 話し | 話しにくい (hard to talk/speak) |
| 起きる (to get up) | 起きます | 起き | 起きにくい (hard to get up) |
| 住む (to live) | 住みます | 住み | 住みにくい (hard to live [in]) |
| 食べる (to eat) | 食べます | 食べ | 食べにくい (hard to eat) |
| する (to do) | します | し | しにくい (hard to do) |
3. It Conjugates Like an i-Adjective
Because にくい behaves as an i-adjective, use regular adjective endings:
| Form | Conjugation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Present (polite) | 〜にくいです | あの町は住みにくいです。 That town is difficult to live in. |
| Negative | 〜にくくない | あの町は住みにくくないです。 That town is not difficult to live in. |
| Past | 〜にくかった | あの町は住みにくかったです。 That town was difficult to live in. |
| Past negative | 〜にくくなかった | あの町は住みにくくなかったです。 That town was not difficult to live in. |
| Noun-modifier | 〜にくい + N | 住みにくい町 A town that is difficult to live in |
4. Examples You’ll Actually Say
- この靴は脱ぎにくいです。
These shoes are hard to take off. - 怖い先生は話しにくいです。
Scary teachers are hard to talk to. - 漢字が多い本は読みにくいです。
Books with lots of kanji are hard to read. - 二日酔いの日は起きにくいです。
On days with a hangover, it’s hard to get up. - 狭い家は生活しにくいです。
A cramped house is hard to live in.
5. Nuance & Usage Tips
- Transitivity matters: For durability/resistance, intransitives like こわれにくい (hard to break) are common.
- Partner grammar: The opposite is V-stem + やすい (easy to V). Use whichever matches your meaning.
Comparison of ～にくい and ～やすい
| Verb (Dictionary form) | ～にくい (hard to…) | ～やすい (easy to…) | English meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 食べる (to eat) | 食べにくい | 食べやすい | hard/easy to eat |
| 飲む (to drink) | 飲みにくい | 飲みやすい | hard/easy to drink |
| 読む (to read) | 読みにくい | 読みやすい | hard/easy to read |
| 書く (to write) | 書きにくい | 書きやすい | hard/easy to write |
| 使う (to use) | 使いにくい | 使いやすい | hard/easy to use |
| 分かる (to understand) | 分かりにくい | 分かりやすい | hard/easy to understand |
| 見る (to see/look) | 見にくい | 見やすい | hard/easy to see |
| 聞く (to listen/hear) | 聞きにくい | 聞きやすい | hard/easy to hear |
Pro Tip: Use -nikui for Psychological Difficulty
Beyond physical difficulty, -nikui is perfect for expressing that something is hard to do because it’s socially awkward, emotionally difficult, or uncomfortable.
上司に意見を言いにくいです。
(It’s hard to state my opinion to my boss.)
6. Practice Time!
Change the prompts into V-stem + にくい sentences.
| Cue | Model answer | English |
|---|---|---|
| このパソコン／壊れる | このパソコンは壊れにくいです。 | This computer is hard to break. |
| 靴／脱ぐ | この靴は脱ぎにくいです。 | These shoes are hard to take off. |
| 難しい文法／理解する | 難しい文法は理解しにくいです。 | Difficult grammar is hard to understand. |
| 二日酔いの日／起きる | 二日酔いの日は起きにくいです。 | It’s hard to get up on a hangover day. |
| 漢字が多い本／読む | 漢字が多い本は読みにくいです。 | A book with many kanji is hard to read. |
Your turn:
- この箸／使う
- 小さい文字／読む
- その会社／働く
7. Common Mistakes
| ❌ Wrong | Why | ✅ Fix |
|---|---|---|
| この本は読みにくです。 | Missing い (i-adj). | この本は読みにくいです。 |
| 私はピアノが弾きにくいです。I’m not good at playing the piano. | ～にくい means hard to do, but here the speaker wants to say not good at. | 私はピアノが苦手です。 |
8. FAQ
- QCan I use -nikui for things that are emotionally hard to do?
- A
Yes, absolutely. This is a very common and natural usage. -nikui is perfect for situations that are difficult due to social pressure, awkwardness, or psychological reasons.
- 本当のことは言いにくいです。 (The truth is hard to say.)
- 怖い人には話しにくいです。 (It’s hard to talk to scary people.)
- QI’ve heard -zurai used instead of -nikui. What’s the difference?
- A
-nikui (にくい) is the general term for “hard to do.” -zurai (づらい) often implies that the difficulty involves some kind of pain, suffering, or emotional burden for the speaker. It’s more personal and subjective.
Example: きのう父親とけんかしたので、今日は気まずくて話しづらいです。 (I had a fight with my father yesterday, so today I feel awkward and find it difficult to talk to him.)
- QWhat is the opposite of V-nikui (hard to do)?
- A
The direct opposite is V-stem + やすい (yasui), which means “easy to do.” It follows the exact same grammatical pattern.
この字は読みにくい。 (This handwriting is hard to read.)
この字は読みやすい。 (This handwriting is easy to read.)
- QHow do you conjugate V-nikui into its negative or past tense forms?
- A
You treat it exactly like any other i-adjective (e.g., たかい takai – high, おいしい oishii – delicious).
- Present Negative: 食べにくくない (tabenikukunai) – It’s not hard to eat.
- Past Tense: 食べにくかった (tabenikukatta) – It was hard to eat.
- Past Negative: 食べにくくなかった (tabenikukunakatta) – It wasn’t hard to eat.
- QCan I use -nikui for ability-related difficulty?
- A
No, -nikui refers to difficulty caused by the object/situation, not by your ability. For ability, use 〜が苦手です.
Example: わたしは数学が苦手です。I’m not good at math.
9. Related Grammar (for awareness)
- V-stem + やすい: the positive counterpart “easy to V.”
- V-stem + づらい: casual, close in meaning to にくい (e.g., 話しづらい).
- 難しい: adjective for difficulty of content/ability (この問題は難しい / this question is difficult).
Conclusion
You can now:
- ✅ Build V-stem + にくい to say “hard to do”
- ✅ Conjugate it like an i-adjective and modify nouns
- ✅ Use it naturally to describe objects/places/situations that cause difficulty
Practice by rewriting three tasks or objects you found difficult this week using 〜にくい—your Japanese will sound clear and natural.
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