How to Say ‘That must be hard.’ in Japanese
それはおつらいですね。
sore wa o tsurai desu ne
[soh-reh wah o tsoo-RAH-ee dess neh]
🇯🇵 In Japan: Japanese pharmacists usually offer a brief line of sympathy like this before asking questions. A small nod or はい is all the reply it needs.
Phrase Breakdown
それは
sore wa
that
Refers to what the other person just said. Pronounce は as 'wa': sore wa.
それは大変ですね。
That sounds tough.
Words in this phrase
それ
sore
[soh-reh]
that
Refers to something just mentioned by the other person.
それは魅力的なお話ですね。
That sounds very appealing.
は
wa
[wah]
topic marker
は marks the topic of the sentence.
空席はありますか。
Are there any seats available?
おつらいですね。
o tsurai desu ne
must be hard for you
つらい means painful or hard. The polite お shows sympathy, and ね seeks agreement warmly.
毎日おつらいですね。
It must be hard every day.
Words in this phrase
お
o
[o]
polite prefix
Prefix added for politeness.
お名前は？
What is your name?
つらい
tsurai
[tsoo-RAH-ee]
hard; painful; tough
An i-adjective for emotionally or physically difficult, painful situations.
一人で住むのはつらいです。
Living alone is hard.
です
desu
[dess]
is; polite copula
A polite sentence ending used in formal conversation.
少し伺いたいです。
I would like to ask a little.
ね
ne
[neh]
isn't it?; right?
A sentence-ending particle used to seek agreement or add warmth.
すばらしい経験ですね。
That's wonderful experience, isn't it?
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