手(て)を焼(や)く

てをやく

expression, verb phrase

to have trouble with; to be a handful; to be at one's wit's end

1. to have trouble with; to be a handful; to be at one's wit's end

To struggle with handling someone or something difficult. Often used for children, pets, or problematic situations that resist one's efforts to manage them.

息子(むすこ)には手(て)を焼(や)いている。

My son is a handful.

この問題(もんだい)には随分(ずいぶん)手(て)を焼(や)いた。

I really struggled with this problem.

先生(せんせい)でさえ、彼(かれ)には手(て)を焼(や)いている。

Even the teacher is having trouble handling him.

新(あたら)しいパソコンの設定(せってい)に手(て)を焼(や)いた。

I had a hard time setting up the new computer.

子犬(こいぬ)がいたずらばかりするので、手(て)を焼(や)いている。

The puppy keeps getting into mischief, so it's quite a handful.

Idiom origin

Literally "to burn one's hand." The image is of being burned while trying to handle something hot (difficult), suggesting the difficulty and frustration of dealing with a challenging person or situation.

Common patterns

〜に手(て)を焼(や)く - to have trouble with ~, to struggle with ~

手(て)を焼(や)く (present)
手(て)を焼(や)いている (progressive - currently struggling)
手(て)を焼(や)いた (past)
手(て)を焼(や)かされる (causative-passive - to be made to struggle)

Common subjects

子供(こども) - children
生徒(せいと) - students
部下(ぶか) - subordinates
ペット - pets
問題(もんだい) - problems

Similar words

手(て)に負(お)えない - to be unmanageable
持(も)て余(あま)す - to have more than one can handle
頭(あたま)を悩(なや)ます - to worry over, to rack one's brains
扱(あつか)いに困(こま)る - to have trouble handling

Register

Neutral. Common in everyday conversation.

Related Words

Compare: 手(て)に負(お)えない (to be unmanageable)

Compare: 持(も)て余(あま)す (to have more than one can handle)

Compare: 頭(あたま)を抱(かか)える (to be at a loss)

core

Added 2026.1.19 17:19 · Revised 2026.9.2 13:01

07000/07438_tewoyaku