Meaning & Usage
✨ Basic Meaning
‘Not easily’ or ‘not readily’. It indicates that something expected or desired is taking longer than usual or is difficult to achieve despite effort.
🎯 Primary Function
To emphasize that an action or change is not occurring as smoothly or quickly as expected.
📋 Grammar Structure
なかなか + Verb (Negative Form)
なかなか + い-Adj[く] + ない
なかなか + な-Adj + ではない/じゃない
なかなか + Verb-ない form / Potential Verb-ない form
🎭 Usage Contexts
Formal Situations
Used in business or formal settings with ‘masen’ to report delays or difficulties professionally.
Informal Situations
Very frequent in daily life to complain or express frustration about things taking too long.
Written Language
Common in journals, letters, and reports to describe persistent situations.
Spoken Language
Often used with a tone of slight frustration or impatience.
💡 Common Applications
Expressing Delay
Used when something you are waiting for hasn’t happened yet.
Example: バスがなかなか来ない (The bus is taking a long time to come).
Expressing Difficulty
Used when you are trying to do something but it isn’t progressing well.
Example: 漢字がなかなか覚えられない (I can’t remember Kanji easily).
Health and Physical States
Commonly used to describe symptoms that persist longer than expected.
Example: 咳がなかなか止まらない (The cough just won’t stop).
Frequency
Very High – Extremely common in daily conversations and writing.
Difficulty
JLPT N4 (Lower Intermediate)
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Example Sentences
Example #1
バスがなかなか来ない。
Furigana: バスがなかなかこない。
Romaji: Basu ga nakanaka konai.
English: The bus isn’t coming easily (it’s taking a long time).
Example #2
この宿題は難しくて、なかなか終わらない。
Furigana: このしゅくだいはむずかしくて、なかなかおわらない。
Romaji: Kono shukudai wa muzukashikute, nakanaka owaranai.
English: This homework is difficult, and I can’t finish it easily.
Example #3
薬を飲んだが、熱がなかなか下がらない。
Furigana: くすりをのんだが、ねつがなかなかさがらない。
Romaji: Kusuri o nonda ga, netsu ga nakanaka sagaranai.
English: I took medicine, but my fever won’t go down easily.
Example #4
漢字がなかなか覚えられなくて、困っています。
Furigana: かんじがなかなかおぼえられなくて、こまっています。
Romaji: Kanji ga nakanaka oboerarenakute, komatte imasu.
English: I’m having trouble because I can’t remember Kanji easily.
Example #5
ドアが古くて、なかなか開かない。
Furigana: ドアがふるくて、なかなかあかない。
Romaji: Doa ga furukute, nakanaka akanai.
English: The door is old and won’t open easily.
Example #6
昨夜はコーヒーを飲みすぎて、なかなか寝られなかった。
Furigana: さくやはコーヒーをのみすぎて、なかなかねられなかった。
Romaji: Sakuya wa kōhī o nomisugite, nakanaka nerarenakatta.
English: I drank too much coffee last night, so I couldn’t fall asleep easily.
Example #7
彼の説明は複雑で、なかなか理解できない。
Furigana: かれのせつめいはふくざつで、なかなかりかいできない。
Romaji: Kare no setsumei wa fukuzatsu de, nakanaka rikai dekinai.
English: His explanation is complicated, and I can’t understand it easily.
Example #8
ダイエットをしているが、体重がなかなか減らない。
Furigana: ダイエットをしているが、たいじゅうがなかなかへらない。
Romaji: Daietto o shite iru ga, taijū ga nakanaka heranai.
English: I am on a diet, but my weight isn’t decreasing easily.
Example #9
駅から遠いので、あの店にはなかなか行けない。
Furigana: えきからとおいので、あのみせにはなかなかいけない。
Romaji: Eki kara tōi node, ano mise ni wa nakanaka ikenai.
English: Since it’s far from the station, I can’t go to that shop easily.
Example #10
故障したパソコンがなかなか直らない。
Furigana: こしょうしたパソコンがなかなかなおらない。
Romaji: Koshō shita pasokon ga nakanaka naoranai.
English: The broken computer just won’t get fixed easily.
Notes & Nuances
📌 Important Points
The Affirmative ‘Nakanaka’
When ‘nakanaka’ is used with an affirmative adjective/verb, it means ‘quite’, ‘very’, or ‘better than expected’.
Example: この映画はなかなか面白い。 (This movie is quite interesting.)
Expectation vs. Reality
The speaker usually expects the action to have happened already or is putting in effort for it to happen.
Example: なかなか寝られない。 (Can’t fall asleep easily.)
⚠️ Common Mistakes
❌ なかなか来ます (Nakanaka kimasu) to mean ‘not coming easily’.
✅ なかなか来ません (Nakanaka kimasen)
Using an affirmative verb with ‘nakanaka’ changes the meaning to ‘quite’ or ‘unexpectedly’. To mean ‘not easily’, you must use the negative.
🏛️ Cultural Context
Politeness Level: Neutral. The politeness depends on the end of the sentence (~nai vs ~masen).
Social Situations: It is a polite way to explain why something isn’t finished yet without sounding like you didn’t try.
Regional Variations: Standard across all regions of Japan.
🔍 Subtle Differences
なかなか～ない vs. ぜんぜん～ない
‘Nakanaka’ implies it might happen eventually or is taking time; ‘Zenzen’ means it doesn’t happen at all.
When to use: Use ‘nakanaka’ when you’re still waiting or trying; use ‘zenzen’ for a total negative.
なかなか～ない vs. ～にくい
‘~nikui’ focuses on the physical or psychological difficulty of the action itself; ‘nakanaka ~nai’ focuses on the lack of result/progress.
When to use: Use ‘~nikui’ for ‘hard to read’; use ‘nakanaka ~nai’ for ‘not finishing the book easily’.
📝 Conjugation Notes
When used with verbs, it is very frequently paired with the potential negative form (e.g., できない, 食べられない) to express ‘cannot easily do’.
🔊 Pronunciation Tips
Stress the ‘na’ slightly to emphasize the frustration of waiting.
🧠 Memory Tips
Think of ‘nakanaka’ as a barrier. You are ‘somewhere in the middle’ (中) of the process and can’t reach the end easily.
Other Grammar
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