引っ掛かる

What it means

What does 引っ掛かる mean? It describes the act of something catching or snagging on a surface, causing it to stop or slow, and it can also describe figurative obstacles or concerns that impede progress or smooth handling of a situation.

Main meanings

• physical snag: something becomes caught on a protrusion or obstacle, causing it to stop or hinder movement
• obstacle or delay in a process or plan: a snag that slows or complicates progress
• being hung up on a point or issue: fixating on a particular topic during a discussion

How to use it

Used in everyday Japanese to describe both physical tangling (物が引っ掛かる) and abstract hindrances (その点に引っ掛かる); common in spoken language; in formal writing people may use more precise terms for snag or obstruction; the phrase commonly takes に to indicate where the snag occurs and が for the subject that gets snagged.