Breakdown of Мне трудно говорить об этом.
я
I
этот
this [f: эта, n: это]
говорить
to speak, to talk
трудно
it is hard, difficult
Questions & Answers about Мне трудно говорить об этом.
Why do we use the imperfective verb говорить here instead of the perfective сказать?
We use говорить because the focus is on the process of discussing or talking about the topic. If you wanted to say "It is hard for me to say this" (referring to a single, specific statement or confession), you would use the perfective сказать.
Could I use тяжело instead of трудно in this sentence?
Yes, but it changes the nuance. Трудно means the topic is difficult, sensitive, or awkward to discuss. Тяжело carries a heavier emotional weight, implying that talking about the topic causes you deep emotional pain, sadness, or grief.
Why is the preposition об used here instead of о?
The preposition о changes to об before words starting with vowel sounds (а, о, у, э, и). Since этом starts with the vowel э, we use об to make it easier to pronounce. Note that before "soft" vowels (е, ё, ю, я) that start with a "y" sound, we still usually use о.
In everyday speech, is there another way to say об этом?
Yes, in spoken Russian it is very common to replace об этом (using the Prepositional case) with про это (using the Accusative case). They mean exactly the same thing, but про это is more colloquial.