Learned this from LingoDeer. Pretty easy.

Sources:

LingoDeer

Easy to X

Structure: V in pre-masu, add やすい

Use: To say that V is easy to do. Note for the particles, this form is for saying something is easy to V. So you need to be describing some subject. Which makes sense, because you get a compound adjectival in the end.

Ex.

これがお箸では食べやすい - “This is easy to eat with chopsticks”. Not the subject is the thing that is easy to X. Then note: “It is easy to eat this with chopsticks” => これをお箸で食べるのが易しいです

その先生の授業が合格しやすいね - “That teacher’s class is easy to pass”.

分かりやすい本 - “A easy to understand book”

Hard to X

Structure: V in pre-masu, add にくい

Use: To say that V is hard to do.

Ex.

その酒は飲みにくいよ - “That sake is hard to drink”

このゲームは遊びにくい - “This game is hard to play”

There are also two others that can mean to be difficult.

がたい - Means to be virtually impossible to do.

Ex.

今から勝ちができ難い - “Starting now, it is difficult (almost impossible) to achieve”

あの人が説得しがたいですよ - “That person is nearly impossible to persuade”

づらい - Means to be difficult, but has a more subjective meaining. Such as, some social norm or external force is making you uncomfortable to do it. Limited to actions that are of your own volition.

Ex.

今の僕の感じが表しづらい - “It is difficult to express my current feelings”

彼女が電話しづらいです - “She is difficult to telephone”




Vocab:

Here are some kanji from the lessons that I wasn’t really familiar with at this point: