Hanamaruhanamaru
App

Say something is hard to do

This pattern says an action is hard or difficult to do.

JLPTN5
verb (masu-stem) + にくい~ [masu-stem] + nikui

[action] is hard to do

Take a verb's polite stem (the part before ます) and add にくい to say it is hard to do. The whole thing behaves like an い-adjective, so it can describe a noun or end a sentence. Its opposite is やすい, which means easy to do.

Tips and Common Traps

Hana· Key point

にくい is great for politely explaining why something is awkward — 読みにくい字よみにくいじ (handwriting that is hard to read) is gentler than just saying someone writes badly.

Maru· Common trap

Use the ます-stem, not the dictionary form. 飲むのむ → stem is 飲みのみ → 飲みにくいのみにくい (hard to drink), not 飲むにくい.

Related

Verb (ます-stem) + やすい[verb stem] + ます