Meaning & Usage
✨ Basic Meaning
Expresses that an action is physically, psychologically, or emotionally difficult, uncomfortable, or unpleasant to perform.
🎯 Primary Function
To indicate that the subject finds it hard or uncomfortable to carry out the action described by the verb.
📋 Grammar Structure
Verb (ます-stem) + づらい Examples:
見る (miru) -> 見ます (mimasu) -> 見づらい (mizurai)
言う (iu) -> 言います (iimasu) -> 言いづらい (iizurai)
歩く (aruku) -> 歩きます (arukimasu) -> 歩きづらい (arukizurai)
🎭 Usage Contexts
Formal Situations
Acceptable in slightly less formal written or spoken contexts, but not typically used in highly formal speeches or academic papers where more formal alternatives might exist.
Informal Situations
Very common in everyday conversation and informal writing.
Written Language
Used in various forms of writing including essays, novels, articles, and online content, but less common in very formal documentation.
Spoken Language
Frequently used in daily communication.
💡 Common Applications
Describing physical difficulty or discomfort.
Used when an action is physically hard, painful, or awkward to do.
Example: この椅子は硬くて座りづらいです。
(Kono isu wa katakute suwarizurai desu.)
This chair is hard and difficult to sit on.
Describing psychological or emotional difficulty.
Used when an action is mentally or emotionally taxing, embarrassing, or uncomfortable to do.
Example: 本当のことを彼に言いづらい。
(Hontou no koto o kare ni iizurai.)
It’s hard to tell him the truth.
Indicating something is hard to process or understand.
Can refer to information that is difficult to see, hear, or comprehend clearly.
Example: 字が小さくて読みづらい新聞だ。
(Ji ga chiisakute yomizurai shinbun da.)
A newspaper with small print that is hard to read.
Frequency
Moderately frequent, particularly in spoken Japanese and less formal writing.
Difficulty
Relatively easy to understand the basic meaning, but mastering the nuance and distinction from similar grammar points like ～にくい is crucial for advanced learners.
Example Sentences
この道は狭くて車が通りづらい。
This road is narrow and difficult for cars to pass through.
上司に給料アップをお願いするのは、どうも気が引けて頼みづらい。
I somehow feel hesitant and find it hard to ask my boss for a raise.
この靴はデザインはいいんだけど、かかとが高すぎて歩きづらい。
The design of these shoes is nice, but the heels are too high, making them hard to walk in.
Notes & Nuances
📌 Important Points
Connection to the ます-stem.
Always attaches to the ます-stem of the verb, similar to ～にくい or ～がたい.
Example: 飲む (nomu) -> 飲みます (nomimasu) -> 飲みづらい (nomizurai)
Focus on inherent difficulty or unpleasantness.
While ~にくい often indicates external, objective difficulty, ~づらい often implies an internal feeling of difficulty, discomfort, or reluctance.
Example: このペンは書きづらい。
(Kono pen wa kakizurai.)
This pen is hard to write with (perhaps uncomfortable or smudges easily, focusing on the unpleasant aspect).
⚠️ Common Mistakes
❌ Using dictionary form or other verb forms before づらい.
✅ Use the ます-stem.
づらい must always attach to the ます-stem of the verb.
❌ Confusing its nuance with ～にくい.
✅ Understand the subtle difference in emphasis (internal/uncomfortable/reluctant vs. external/objective).
While often interchangeable, ~づらい leans towards subjective discomfort or psychological difficulty, whereas ~にくい is more about physical or technical impossibility/difficulty.
🏛️ Cultural Context
Politeness Level: Neutral to slightly informal. Suitable for most everyday situations but generally avoided in highly formal or honorific speech.
Social Situations: Common in interactions among equals, family, or close colleagues. Less common when speaking to superiors in a very formal setting.
Regional Variations: Generally standard across Japan, with no significant regional variations in usage or meaning.
🔍 Subtle Differences
～づらい vs. ～にくい
～づらい often implies difficulty due to discomfort, unpleasantness, or psychological/emotional reluctance. ～にくい tends to suggest objective, physical, or technical difficulty or impossibility.
When to use: Use ～づらい when the difficulty feels inherent, uncomfortable, or relates to a reluctance to act. Use ～にくい when the difficulty is more about external factors making the action hard or impossible.
～づらい vs. ～がたい
～がたい expresses a strong emotional, moral, or psychological impossibility or extreme difficulty to do something, often related to disbelief, acceptance, or forgiveness. It is generally more formal than ～づらい.
When to use: Use ～づらい for general difficulty, discomfort, or reluctance. Use ～がたい for actions that are exceptionally hard to do because they conflict with one’s strong feelings, beliefs, or sense of reality (e.g., 信じがたい – hard to believe, 許しがたい – hard to forgive).
～づらい vs. ～かねる
～かねる expresses inability or difficulty based on circumstance, principle, or politeness, often used for polite refusal. It is more formal than ～づらい.
When to use: Use ～づらい for general difficulty or discomfort. Use ～かねる in more formal situations when you cannot or should not do something, often as a polite way of saying “I can’t”.
📝 Conjugation Notes
Functions as an i-adjective: 見づらい (present affirmative), 見づらくない (present negative), 見づらかった (past affirmative), 見づらくなかった (past past negative), 見づらく (adverbial form).
🔊 Pronunciation Tips
Pronounced “zu-rai”. The “zu” is typically the standard ず, not づ. The stress falls on the second syllable “ra”.
🧠 Memory Tips
Think of 「辛い (つらい)」(tsurai – painful/difficult). ～づらい (tsurai) means “difficult to do” or “unpleasant to do”, connecting the feeling of difficulty/pain (辛い) to the action (verb stem + づらい).
Vocabulary List
座る
suwaru
to sit
言う
iu
to say/tell
歩く
aruku
to walk
読む
yomu
to read
聞く
kiku
to hear; to ask; to listen
理解する
rikai suru
to understand
通り
street; road
Kanji List
辛い
つらい
painful, difficult, hard
座
すわ
sit
言
い
say
歩
ある
walk
読
よ
read
聞
き
hear, ask, listen
理解
りかい
understanding
道
みち
road, path
狭
せま
narrow
給料
きゅうりょう
salary
上司
じょうし
boss, superior
Practice Exercises
次の動詞を「～づらい」の形にしてください：話す (hanasu)
話しづらい
話すづらい
話せるづらい
話したづらい
彼女は正直な人なので、嘘が__。
言いやすい
言いがたい
言いづらい
言えません
I’m a software engineer based in Japan, with experience in developing web and mobile applications. I’m passionate about technology, especially in DevOps, AI, and app development using platforms like AWS, Flutter, and Node.js. My goal is to build a website that shares knowledge about the Japanese language and IT, helping everyone learn and grow more easily in the digital era.
