隔靴掻痒（かっかそうよう）

Japanese vocabulary

Meaning: being frustrated because something is not quite as hoped (just as one cannot scratch an itch from outside a shoe); having an itch that one cannot scratch

See it used in real works

• Example sentences from Japanese novels & web fiction (Massif)
• Hear “隔靴掻痒” pronounced in real videos (YouGlish)