How to Say ‘Which part was unclear?’ in Japanese
どこが分かりにくかった？
doko ga wakari nikukatsu ta
[DOH-koh GAH wah-kah-REE nee-koo-KAHT TAH]
💬 Usage Tip: Great troubleshooting question. Casual tone; more polite: [どこが分かりにくかったですか？]
🇯🇵 In Japan: In lessons and workplaces, this question is appreciated because it invites concrete feedback without sounding confrontational.
Phrase Breakdown
どこが
doko ga
which part; where (as the subject/focus)
どこ = where/which point. が marks the focus: “What part was…?”
どこが難しいですか。
Which part is difficult?
Words in this phrase
どこ
doko
[DOH-koh]
where / which part
Asking for the specific point: “Which part…?”
どこが分かりにくかった？教えて。
Which part was hard to understand? Tell me.
が
ga
[GAH]
(subject marker)
Marks the focused problem area: どこが〜 = “which part is…”.
どこが分かりにくかった？
Which part was hard to understand?
分かりにくかった
wakari nikukatsu ta
was hard to understand
Past form of 分かりにくい (“hard to understand”): 分かる + にくい (hard to do) → 分かりにくい → 分かりにくかった.
説明が分かりにくかったです。
The explanation was hard to understand.
Words in this phrase
分かり
wakari
[wah-kah-REE]
understanding (stem)
Stem used in “easy/hard to understand” expressions.
どこが分かりにくかった？
Which part was hard to understand?
にくかっ
nikukatsu
[nee-koo-KAHT]
hard to (do) (stem)
Part of 分かりにくかった = “was hard to understand.”
どこが分かりにくかった？
Which part was hard to understand?
た
ta
[TAH]
past (casual)
Past ending indicating it was difficult before/earlier.
どこが分かりにくかった？
Which part was hard to understand?
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