〜にかたくない (~ni kataku nai) — it is not hard to (imagine / guess) ~
Even without seeing it yourself, 'it is easy to imagine' from the situation — a stiff, written form.
Formula (सूत्र ढाँचा)
Grammar rule (व्याकरण नियम र परिभाषा)
When to use it
- After an earthquake the news says: 「家を失った人々の悲しみは想像にかたくない」— 'it is not hard to imagine the grief of people who lost their homes.'
- It is very stiff, written language: news, articles and speeches. With a friend, 「すぐ想像できるよ」is enough.
Meaning
- You didn't see it yourself, but looking at the situation your mind grasps it easily — that is the feeling of 「〜にかたくない」.
- Here 「かたい」doesn't mean 'hard as in firm' but 'difficult' (難い), so 「かたくない」= 'not difficult', and it is also written in kanji as 「〜に難くない」.
How to attach
- Drop 「する」from nouns like 「想像」「理解」and add 「に」directly: 想像にかたくない
- With a verb, the dictionary form: 察するにかたくない
Versus what you know
Don't mix it up with the 「〜がたい」you learned earlier (想像しがたい = hard to imagine) — the meaning is the exact opposite.
Watch out
It only goes with a few words for mental acts — 想像・察する・理解 — you cannot say 「見るにかたくない」or 「行くにかたくない」.
Examples (उदाहरणहरू)
家を失った人々の悲しみは、想像にかたくない。
いえをうしなったひとびとのかなしみは、そうぞうにかたくない。
It is not hard to imagine the grief of the people who lost their homes.
How it is built (कसरी बन्यो) 家を失った人々の悲しみ = the grief of the people who lost their homes → 想像 = imagining (「する」 dropped) → attach 「にかたくない」 = not hard to imagine.
言葉も分からない国で働く彼の苦労は、察するにかたくない。
ことばもわからないくにではたらくかれのくろうは、さっするにかたくない。
It is not hard to guess how hard it is for him, working in a country where he doesn't even know the language.
How it is built (कसरी बन्यो) 彼の苦労 = his hardship, his struggle → 察する = to sense how someone feels (dictionary form) → 「にかたくない」 = not hard to guess.
売り上げが三年続けて落ちたのだから、社長の決断も理解にかたくない。
うりあげがさんねんつづけておちたのだから、しゃちょうのけつだんもりかいにかたくない。
Sales fell three years in a row, so the president's decision is not hard to understand.
How it is built (कसरी बन्यो) 売り上げが落ちた = sales fell (the reason) → 社長の決断 = the boss's decision → 理解 = understanding (without 「する」) → 「にかたくない」 = not hard to understand.
Knowledge check (मिनी ज्ञान जाँच)
「突然仕事を失った彼の不安は、察する＿＿かたくない。」— fill the blank.
💡 Hint: Recall the whole form: 〜○かたくない.
Dictionary form + にかたくない. 察するにかたくない = not hard to guess.
In which sentence is 「にかたくない」unnatural?
💡 Hint: A mental act, or a physical one?
にかたくない only goes with mental words like 想像・察する・理解. For 'this slope is easy to climb', say 「この坂は上りやすい」.
Which one means 'it is easy to imagine'?
💡 Hint: 「かたい」(difficult) is flipped by 「ない」.
想像にかたくない = not hard to imagine. The other three all mean 'hard / impossible to imagine' — the opposite.
Your score: /3