Explanation
〜がたい means "hard to / difficult to" and is used mainly in written or formal Japanese. Form: [ます-stem] + がたい (理解しがたい, 信じがたい).
Usage: Means "hard to (do)" for emotional or psychological reasons. Common examples: 理解しがたい, 信じがたい, 受け入れがたい. It is formal and often appears in writing.
Formation: Verb ます stem + がたい.
Usage & nuance: 〜がたい expresses difficulty that is emotional or psychological, such as hard to believe or hard to accept.
Compare: 〜がたい is psychological difficulty, 〜にくい is general difficulty, and 〜づらい is difficulty that is hard or uncomfortable to endure.
हिंदी में समझें
〜がたい का मतलब "करना कठिन" (भावनात्मक)। रूप: [ます-stem] + がたい।
Examples
- かれのこうどうは、りかいしがたい。 (Kare no koudou wa, rikaishi gatai.)
हिंदी: उसका व्यवहार समझना कठिन है।
English: His behaviour is hard to understand. - そんなことは、しんじがたい。 (Sonna koto wa, shinji gatai.)
हिंदी: ऐसी बात विश्वास करना कठिन है।
English: Such a thing is hard to believe. - 彼の気持ちは理解しがたい。 (Kare no kimochi wa rikaishigatai.)
हिंदी: उसकी भावना समझना कठिन है।
English: His feelings are hard to understand. - それは信じがたい話だ。 (Sore wa shinjigatai hanashi da.)
हिंदी: यह विश्वास करना कठिन बात है।
English: That is a hard-to-believe story.
Common mistakes
- Using it for physical difficulty → Use にくい for physical difficulty — がたい is more emotional/formal.
Practice this topic
Test your understanding with 2 questions on 〜がたい — Hard to.