What's the difference between きらいがあるand がちだ?


I believe that both these forms are used to express a negative tendence, but I
have the feeling that they are not always interchangeable. In particolar, I
got the impression that 嫌いがある is also used to refer to somebody's attitude, am
I right?




Yeah, you're kind of right. With がち you put emphasis on the fact that
something repeatedly happens, while きらいがある focuses on the way things just are
or what people do as a result of something. However, you can't use きらいがある with
stuff like the weather, while with がち you can.

General example not pertaining to the last sentence:

> 彼は他人の意見を無視しがちだ。

and

> 彼には他人の意見を無視するきらいがある。

The first sentence puts emphasis on him frequently ignoring people's opinions,
while the second one stresses the fact that he, as a person, has a tendency to
ignore them.

I feel like I explained it pretty badly, but I still hope you get something
out of it. Just remember, you can't use きらいがある with natural phenomena and for
talking about yourself. Well, unless you like judging yourself in third
person...

