得難い
えがたい
i-adjective
hard to come by; rare; invaluable
Conjugation
| Affirmative | Negative | |
|---|---|---|
| Present | 得難い | 得難くない |
| Past | 得難かった | 得難くなかった |
| て form | 得難くて | 得難くなくて |
| Adverbial | 得難く | — |
| Conditional ば | 得難ければ | 得難くなければ |
| Conditional たら | 得難かったら | 得難くなかったら |
1.
hard to come by; rare; invaluable; precious
Describes something that is difficult to obtain or encounter, and therefore precious or valuable. Often used to express appreciation for rare opportunities or irreplaceable people.
得難い経験だった。
It was a rare and valuable experience.
彼女は得難い人材だ。
She is an invaluable talent.
こんなに親身になってくれる友人は得難い存在だと思う。
I think a friend who cares about you this much is a truly rare treasure.
Formed from 得る (to obtain) + ～難い (difficult to). Carries a strong positive connotation — something rare and therefore precious.
THE ～難い PATTERN:
The suffix ～難い attaches to verb stems to mean "hard to do":
- 忘れ難い: hard to forget (memorable)
- 許し難い: hard to forgive (unforgivable)
- 耐え難い: hard to endure (unbearable)
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 得難い経験: a rare and valuable experience
- 得難い人材: invaluable talent
- 得難い存在: an irreplaceable presence
- 得難いチャンス: a rare opportunity
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 珍しい: rare, unusual (neutral — doesn't imply value)
- 貴重: precious, valuable (emphasizes worth)
REGISTER:
Somewhat literary/formal. More common in writing than casual speech.