がたい | Hard To and Almost Impossible To in Japanese

Not Difficult — Nearly Impossible

がたい is far stronger than にくい. It means the thing can barely be done at all, usually for psychological or moral reasons.

信(しん)じがたい話(はなし)です。(That's a story I can hardly believe.)

Against にくい

Pattern	Force
にくい	physically awkward — 書(か)きにくいペン
がたい	barely possible — 想像(そうぞう)しがたい

にくい attaches to almost any verb. がたい attaches to a small, fixed set, nearly all of them mental: 信(しん)じる, 想像(そうぞう)する, 理解(りかい)する, 忘(わす)れる, 近寄(ちかよ)る, 耐(た)える, 捨(す)てる.

×食(た)べがたい is wrong. Eating is not a moral difficulty; use 食(た)べにくい.

忘れがたい — A Compliment

Some がたい compounds are positive: 忘(わす)れがたい思(おも)い出(で) is an unforgettable memory, and 得(え)がたい経験(けいけん) is a rare and valuable experience.

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Formal and written. It behaves as an い-adjective: 信(しん)じがたかった, 信(しん)じがたい話(はなし).

Example Sentences

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信(しん)じがたい話(はなし)ですね。

That's a story that's hard to believe.

想像(そうぞう)しがたい苦労(くろう)があったはずです。

There must have been hardships hard to imagine.

忘(わす)れがたい思(おも)い出(で)になりました。

It became an unforgettable memory.

理解(りかい)しがたい行動(こうどう)でした。

It was behaviour I find hard to understand.

得(え)がたい経験(けいけん)をさせていただきました。

I was given a rare and valuable experience.

耐(た)えがたい暑(あつ)さが続(つづ)いています。

Unbearable heat has continued.

捨(す)てがたい案(あん)だと思(おも)います。

I think it's a proposal too good to discard.

近寄(ちかよ)りがたい雰囲気(ふんいき)の人(ひと)です。

He has an air that makes him hard to approach.