Schwerfallen

Schwerfallen is a German verb meaning “to be difficult” or “to be hard to do.” It describes a situation, task, or change that is not easy for someone. The expression centers on the experiencer in the dative: it falls to someone to struggle with something. For example, Es fällt mir schwer means “I find it difficult.”

The thing that is difficult can be expressed in different ways. Commonly one uses an infinitive clause with zu: Es fällt mir schwer, Deutsch zu lernen. The thing can also be named directly: Diese Aufgabe fällt ihm schwer. In addition, the phrase can be used with alternative constructions such as Es fällt mir schwer, sich zu konzentrieren or Es fällt mir schwer, Veränderungen zu akzeptieren.

Grammatically, schwerfallen is treated as a non-separable verb. In present tense: Es fällt mir schwer. In past tense: Es fiel mir schwer. The past participle is schwergefallen, and the Perfekt is typically formed with haben: Es hat mir schwergefallen, diese Entscheidung zu treffen. Another common variant is Es ist mir schwergefallen, …, which is also correct.

Etymology and usage notes: schwer means “heavy” or “difficult,” and fallen here conveys the sense of something that “falls upon someone” as a burden. Schwerfallen is used in formal and everyday language to express personal difficulty with cognitive tasks, emotional adjustments, or new routines. A colloquial alternative is sich schwer tun, which also means “to have difficulty,” but is more informal and often used without a fixed construction like zu-infinitives.