INDEX:
1. difficult to do or understand
2. needing a lot of skill, hard work, and determination
3. needing a lot of energy or physical effort
4. complicated and needing a lot of care
5. a situation that is difficult to deal with or talk about
6. to make a situation more difficult
7. someone who is unhelpful and causes problems
8. a time when you have a lot of problems
9. difficult conditions
10. to have problems when you are trying to do something
11. to pretend that something is more difficult than it really is
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ EASY
see also
↑ PROBLEM
↑ COMPLICATED
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1. difficult to do or understand
▷ difficult /ˈdɪfɪk ə lt/ [adjective]
▪ That’s a good question, but it’s a difficult one to answer.
difficult for
▪ The reading exercise was very difficult for most of the children.
difficult to see/hear/describe etc
▪ The insects are so small that they are difficult to see without using a microscope.
it is difficult (for somebody) to do something
▪ It’s very difficult to find people who are willing to do the job.
find it difficult to do something
▪ Until now, patients often found it difficult to get information about their rights.
make it difficult for somebody to do something
▪ My mother’s illness makes it difficult for her to walk.
▷ hard /hɑːʳd/ [adjective]
not easy to do or understand. Hard is less formal than difficult :
▪ I thought the exam was really hard.
▪ The hardest thing about moving to a new place was meeting new people.
it is hard (for somebody) to do something
▪ It’s hard to see the stage from here.
▪ It was hard for me to understand her - her accent was very strong.
find it hard to do something
▪ I find it hard to believe that he didn’t know the gun was loaded.
▷ tough /tʌf/ [adjective]
very difficult to do or deal with - use this about jobs, decisions, questions, or problems :
▪ The judge asked the lawyers on both sides some very tough questions.
▪ The governor is trying to show voters that he’s able to deal with the toughest issues facing Ohio today.
▷ be a tall order /biː ə ˌtɔːl ˈɔːʳdəʳ/ [verb phrase] spoken
use this about something difficult you have been asked to do, especially when you do not think it is likely you will be able to do it :
▪ ‘Can you finish the work by Friday?’ ‘Sounds like a tall order to me, but I’ll see what I can do.’
▷ easier said than done /ˌiːziəʳ ˌsed ð ə n ˈdʌn/ [adjective phrase] spoken
use this to tell someone that something is much more difficult than they think it is :
▪ Talking calmly to a screaming child sounds like a good idea, but any parent will tell you it’s easier said than done.
▷ not the easiest /nɒt ði ˈiːziə̇st/ [adjective phrase]
not the easiest...to do
spoken
use this to say that it is difficult to do something :
▪ I’ll drive you there -- it’s not the easiest place to get to if you don’t have a car.
▪ I tried to explain it to him, but he’s not the easiest person to talk to.
▷ not an easy.../be no easy... /nɒt ən ˈiːzi..., biː nəʊ ˈiːzi.../ [verb phrase]
use this to say that something is difficult to do or make :
▪ Finding a solution to the present crisis in the region is no easy task.
not an easy task/job/decision
▪ The roads are often dangerous, and getting food to the villages has not been an easy task.
▷ a pain (in the neck) /ə ˌpeɪn (ɪn ðə ˈnek)/ [noun phrase] spoken
something that is difficult and annoying to do or deal with :
▪ It was a pain - I had to read more than 200 articles - but I learned a lot from it.
▪ Getting across town at rush hour is a real pain in the neck.
2. needing a lot of skill, hard work, and determination
▷ challenging /ˈtʃælɪndʒɪŋ, ˈtʃæləndʒɪŋ/ [adjective]
a challenging job or activity needs a lot of hard work and skill, but it is also interesting and enjoyable :
▪ The job wasn’t challenging enough for me - I wanted something more creative.
▪ Bowden called the piece ‘one of the most challenging pieces of music I’ve ever played.’
▷ be a challenge /biː ə ˈtʃælɪndʒ/ [verb phrase]
if a new job or activity is a challenge, it is difficult, but you are determined to do it because it is interesting and exciting :
▪ You may find your first couple of months in the job quite a challenge.
▪ Getting the two groups to work together was a challenge, but we did it.
▷ demanding /dɪˈmɑːndɪŋǁdɪˈmæn-/ [adjective]
a demanding job or activity is very difficult and tiring, because it needs all your effort and skill :
▪ Being a nurse in a busy hospital is a demanding job - you don’t get much free time.
▷ daunting /ˈdɔːntɪŋ/ [adjective]
if something is daunting, it seems almost impossible, and the idea of doing it makes you feel nervous :
▪ Climbing Everest is a daunting challenge for any mountaineer.
daunting task
▪ I was faced with the daunting task of learning the whole script in 24 hours.
▷ take some doing /ˌteɪk sʌm ˈduːɪŋ/ [verb phrase not in progressive] spoken
use this about something that needs a lot of effort, skill, or determination, and you admire someone who does it :
▪ Winning 3 gold medals in the Olympic Games takes some doing.
▪ It took some doing, but I finally persuaded Jim to give me a few more days off.
▷ taxing /ˈtæksɪŋ/ [adjective] formal
difficult for someone because of needing more mental or physical effort than they are able to give :
▪ The job was taxing, but there were some good moments.
▪ Later in the pregnancy when the drive to work was getting too taxing, I worked at home two days a week.
▷ exacting /ɪgˈzæktɪŋ/ [adjective]
needing hard work and a lot of attention given to the details of a job, in order to make sure that it is done well :
▪ Film-editing is a difficult and exacting job.
▪ The article is based on the institute’s exacting study of wages in the health care professions.
▷ stretch /stretʃ/ [transitive verb]
if an activity, job etc stretches you, it is difficult enough to make you use all your skill, ability etc, and this helps you become better at it :
▪ The exercises are designed to stretch the abilities of even the most advanced students.
▪ I was disappointed with the course -- I didn’t feel I was being stretched enough.
3. needing a lot of energy or physical effort
▷ hard /hɑːʳd/ [adjective]
tiring and needing a lot of work, energy, or physical effort :
▪ Let your mother sit down. She’s had a hard day at work.
▪ Their car broke down, and they were suddenly faced with a long hard walk back to the nearest town.
▷ strenuous /ˈstrenjuəs/ [adjective]
needing a lot of physical effort :
▪ The doctors advised against any strenuous activity for six weeks.
▪ Last season his trainers put him through a strenuous running program.
▷ backbreaking/back-breaking /ˈbækbreɪkɪŋ/ [adjective]
backbreaking work, especially work that involves carrying and lifting heavy things, is extremely hard and needs a lot of physical effort :
▪ After four hours of backbreaking work, we had finally pulled the wall down.
▷ gruelling British /grueling American /ˈgruː ə lɪŋ/ [adjective]
something that is gruelling is extremely tiring because it continues for a long time and you have to use a lot of effort continuously :
▪ The Le Mans 24-hour race is the most gruelling event in the motor-racing calendar.
▪ Before they join the army, young recruits are put through a particularly grueling endurance course.
▷ arduous /ˈɑːʳdjuəsǁ-dʒuəs/ [adjective] written
work or a journey that is arduous is long and tiring and needs a lot of strength and effort :
▪ In those days, long-distance travel was slow and arduous.
▪ Today, Corbett will continue his arduous climb to the top of the park’s highest peak.
▷ punishing /ˈpʌnɪʃɪŋ/ [adjective]
extremely difficult in a way that damages or weakens something or makes someone feel very tired :
▪ The transatlantic flight was a punishing task for the plane’s old engines.
▪ He set himself a punishing schedule of talks, lectures and conferences all over America.
▷ be murder /biː ˈmɜːʳdəʳ/ [verb phrase] spoken
use this when something is extremely difficult and needs a lot of effort or skill :
▪ Traveling five days a week is murder. I can’t do it anymore.
it is murder doing something
▪ It’s murder trying to park in this town!
▷ be a slog /biː ə ˈslɒgǁ-ˈslɑːg/ [verb phrase] British informal
if something is a slog, it takes a lot of time and effort and is often boring :
▪ He didn’t become famous overnight -- it’s been a long hard slog.
▪ The first half of the book was quite interesting but the last part was a bit of a slog.
4. complicated and needing a lot of care
▷ tricky /ˈtrɪki/ [adjective]
a tricky job is difficult to do because it is complicated and you have to do it very carefully :
▪ Getting the two sides of the mobile to balance is tricky.
be (a) tricky business
be difficult to do
▪ Refuelling a plane in mid-air is a tricky business.
▷ fiddly /ˈfɪdli/ [adjective] British
difficult to do because you have to handle very small objects :
▪ He managed to fix the television, but it was a time-consuming and fiddly job.
fiddly to eat/mend/open etc
▪ I don’t like shrimps -- they’re so fiddly to eat.
5. a situation that is difficult to deal with or talk about
▷ difficult /ˈdɪfɪk ə lt/ [adjective]
a difficult situation or subject is not easy to deal with or talk about, and it makes you feel nervous or unhappy :
▪ Things at home have been very difficult since my father died.
be in a difficult position
to have problems that are difficult to deal with
▪ Officials say they are in the difficult position of having to implement a law they strongly disagree with.
▷ awkward /ˈɔːkwəʳd/ [adjective]
an awkward situation or subject is difficult to deal with or talk about, especially because it might be embarrassing :
▪ He’s at an age when kids start asking awkward questions - like ‘Where do babies come from?’
▷ tricky /ˈtrɪki/ [adjective]
a tricky situation is one that you have to deal with very carefully, because there are a lot of things that could easily go wrong :
▪ Teachers often have to deal with tricky situations such as interviews with angry parents.
it could/would be tricky to do something
▪ It would be very tricky to try to stabilize the region without the support of other countries.
▷ delicate /ˈdelɪkɪt, ˈdelɪkət/ [adjective]
a delicate matter, subject, situation etc is one that you must be very careful talking about or dealing with because you risk offending or upsetting people :
▪ I am seeking your professional advice on a very delicate matter.
▪ Madeline was wondering how to approach the delicate question of her salary with her new boss.
▷ sensitive /ˈsensɪtɪv, ˈsensətɪv/ [adjective]
something that is sensitive, such as a political or social problem or a document, is likely to cause trouble or be likely to upset someone :
▪ The team is gathering information on the sensitive subject of child abuse.
▪ The administration claims that the documents contain information of a highly sensitive political nature.
▷ touchy /ˈtʌtʃi/ [adjective]
a touchy subject or situation is one that you must be very careful talking about or dealing with because you risk upsetting or offending someone :
▪ Until now both candidates have avoided talking about the touchy subject of health care reform.
▷ hot potato /ˌhɒt pəˈteɪtəʊǁˌhɑːt-/ [singular noun] informal
a political problem that is very difficult for the government to deal with because there is a lot of disagreement about it :
▪ Fortunately for the government, this issue has drawn attention away from the hot potato of funding the London Underground.
6. to make a situation more difficult
▷ make something more difficult/make something harder /meɪk something mɔːʳ ˈdɪfɪk ə lt, meɪk something ˈhɑːʳdəʳ/ [verb phrase]
to make a situation worse or harder to deal with :
▪ The differences in languages made the negotiations more difficult.
▪ Changes in the bus service will make it harder for people to get to the hospital and other medical facilities.
▪ The new job means more hours at work, which makes it harder for me to see my kids.
▷ complicate /ˈkɒmplɪkeɪt, ˈkɒmpləkeɪtǁˈkɑːm-/ [transitive verb]
to make a situation, problem etc more difficult by making it more complicated :
▪ I don’t need a boyfriend - they just complicate your life.
complicate matters/things
▪ Far from helping the situation, the new regulations are likely to complicate matters.
greatly complicate
▪ A student who has no desire to learn greatly complicates the teacher’s job.
7. someone who is unhelpful and causes problems
▷ difficult /ˈdɪfɪk ə lt/ [adjective]
someone who is difficult is not easy to live with or work with because they do not behave in a helpful, friendly way :
▪ When Darren was a little boy, he was very difficult at times.
▪ Campbell has the reputation of being difficult to work with.
▷ awkward /ˈɔːkwəʳd/ [adjective]
someone who is awkward is deliberately unhelpful and unfriendly, and seems to like causing problems for people :
▪ Do you have to be so awkward about everything?
▷ impossible /ɪmˈpɒsɪb ə l, ɪmˈpɒsəb ə lǁɪmˈpɑː-/ [adjective] spoken
someone who is impossible makes you annoyed and impatient, for example because they are never satisfied or they keep changing their mind :
▪ She’s impossible! Even when I offer to help her she always finds some reason to complain.
▪ Dan’s impossible to live with when he’s sick.
▷ be a pain (in the neck) /biː ə ˌpeɪn (ɪn ðə ˈnek)/ [verb phrase]
someone who is a pain is annoying and difficult to deal with :
▪ Carla can be a pain sometimes, but she’s been a good friend to me.
▪ Little brothers are such a pain in the neck!
▷ problem child /ˈprɒbləm ˌtʃaɪldǁˈprɑː-/ [noun phrase]
a child who is always behaving badly and often gets into trouble :
▪ In my years as a teacher, I’ve seen plenty of problem children come and go.
▷ not the easiest... /nɒt ði ˈiːziə̇st .../ [adjective phrase only before noun]
very difficult to deal with, live with, work with etc :
▪ I’m not surprised you’ve had problems with Diane. She’s not the easiest person to work with, is she?
▷ bolshy/bolshie /ˈbɒlʃiǁˈbəʊlʃi/ [adjective] British informal
someone who is bolshy behaves in an unhelpful, bad-tempered way and argues with the people that they are supposed to obey :
▪ Stop being so bolshie and just get on with it, will you?
8. a time when you have a lot of problems
▷ difficult/hard /ˈdɪfɪk ə lt, hɑːʳd/ [adjective]
use this about a period of time when you have a lot of problems or a lot of bad things happen to you :
▪ The last few months have been especially hard for her.
▪ Those few days were so difficult that I decided to leave my job.
▪ 1996 was perhaps the worst year the automobile industry has faced so far.
have a difficult/hard time
▪ Most families have a very difficult time dealing with a family member’s drug addiction.
▷ bad /bæd/ [adjective]
use this about a period of time when there are a lot of problems, especially when these are very serious :
▪ It seemed that the bad years were finally behind me.
(have a) bad time
▪ He had an especially bad time at boarding school.
▷ tough /tʌf/ [adjective] spoken
use this about a situation or period of time when you have had a lot of problems or a lot of bad things have happened to you :
▪ He’s a good person to be with if ever you’re in a tough situation.
▪ Many of the veteran players had a tough time adjusting to the coach’s style.
9. difficult conditions
▷ difficult /ˈdɪfɪk ə lt/ [adjective]
difficult conditions are ones that make what you are doing more difficult :
▪ Heavy snow will mean difficult driving conditions in some areas.
▪ I’d like to thank the staff for working very hard in these difficult conditions.
▷ unfavourable British /unfavorable American /ʌnˈfeɪv ə rəb ə l/ [adjective]
unfavourable conditions make it difficult for someone to do something, or for something to exist :
▪ Bloom states clearly that he believes that many schools provide unfavorable learning conditions.
▪ Despite an unfavourable business environment, the stock market remained steady.
unfavourable for
▪ Weather forecasters said winds and 13-foot waves may make conditions unfavorable for clean-up and salvage operations.
▷ adverse /ˈædvɜːʳs/ [adjective only before noun]
adverse conditions make it difficult for someone to do something, or for something to exist :
▪ Planes are being kept on the ground because of the adverse weather.
▪ In spite of adverse public opinion, the plan to privatize the railways continued.
▷ hostile /ˈhɒstaɪlǁˈhɑːstl, ˈhɑːstaɪl/ [adjective]
use this to describe severe conditions or weather that make it difficult for people to live or travel :
▪ The Antarctic survey team will be using vehicles specially designed to cope with the hostile environment.
10. to have problems when you are trying to do something
▷ have difficulty/trouble /hæv ˈdɪfɪk ə lti, ˈtrʌb ə l/ [verb phrase]
if you have difficulty when you are trying to do something, you cannot easily do it :
have difficulty/trouble (in) doing something
▪ It was obvious the patient was having great difficulty breathing.
have difficulty/trouble with something
▪ A lot of Japanese students of English have trouble with the pronunciation of ‘b’s and ’v’s.
▷ find something difficult /ˌfaɪnd something ˈdɪfɪk ə lt/ [verb phrase]
to not be able to do something easily, especially because you do not have enough ability or skill :
▪ I found the course difficult at first, but it gradually got easier.
find it difficult to do something
▪ She always found it difficult to keep up with the rest of the class.
▷ with difficulty /wɪð ˈdɪfɪk ə lti/ [adverb]
if you do something with difficulty, you can do it, but only by using all your strength, all your determination etc :
▪ She spoke with difficulty, choking back her tears.
▷ have a hard time /hæv ə ˌhɑːʳd ˈtaɪm/ [verb phrase]
to find it difficult to do something, especially because there are unexpected problems or because you have difficulty persuading other people :
▪ I tried to find the house but I had such a hard time, I decided to give up.
have a hard time doing something
▪ I’m still having a hard time getting the company to pay me.
▷ can hardly/barely /kən ˈhɑːʳdli, ˈbeəʳli/
if you can hardly or can barely do something, especially something physical, it is so difficult that you almost cannot do it :
▪ By the end of the day she could hardly walk.
▪ The smell was so bad that I could barely force myself to stay in the room.
▷ be too much for somebody /bi tuː ˈmʌtʃ fəʳ somebody/ [adjective phrase]
if a situation or job is too much for someone, it is too difficult for them to deal with :
▪ All the bullying and back-stabbing in the office was simply too much for him.
▪ The job was too much for any single manager to cope with.
▷ be a struggle /biː ə ˈstrʌg ə l/
if something is a struggle you have to try very hard and even suffer in order to do it :
▪ Clark lived 112 days on the artificial heart, and each day was a struggle.
▪ She managed to get her money out of the welfare office, but only after a struggle.
it is a struggle (for somebody) to do something
▪ It was a struggle for my mother to understand our lifestyle, but she tried very hard.
it is a struggle doing something
▪ It was a struggle trying to feed a family of five on my salary.
▷ be hard put to do something/be hard pressed to do something /biː ˌhɑːʳd ˌpʊt tə ˈduː something, biː ˌhɑːʳd ˌprest tə ˈduː something/ [verb phrase]
if you say someone would be hard put or hard pressed to do something, you doubt that they would be able to do it because you think it is too difficult :
▪ The two girls look so similar that you’d be hard put to tell the difference between them.
▪ The governor will be hard pressed to find more money for schools while dealing with a $6 billion budget deficit.
▷ have your work cut out for you also have your work cut out /hæv jɔːʳ ˌwɜːʳk kʌt ˈaʊt (fəʳ juː)/ [verb phrase not in progressive] informal
to have to work very hard if you are going to succeed in doing something :
▪ I’ll have my work cut out to get this design finished by this afternoon.
▪ Rice hopes to break the record during tonight’s game, but he’ll have his work cut out for him.
▷ be thrown in at the deep end /biː ˌθrəʊn ɪn ət ðə ˈdiːp end/ [verb phrase] informal
to have to start doing something difficult such as a new job without people making it easier for you because you are new :
▪ When I first started teaching I was really thrown in at the deep end -- I had a class of forty six-year-olds all on my own.
▷ have a job doing something /hæv ə ˌdʒɒb ˈduːɪŋ something ǁ-ˌdʒɑːb-/ [verb phrase] British spoken
if you have a job doing something, it takes a lot of time or a lot of effort, and you may not be able to do it :
▪ You’ll have a job persuading him to give you any more money.
▪ There was some kind of festival going on, and we had a job finding somewhere to park the car.
11. to pretend that something is more difficult than it really is
▷ make a meal (out) of /ˌmeɪk ə ˈmiːl (aʊt) ɒv/ [verb phrase] British
to pretend that a piece of work you have to do is more difficult than it really is, especially so that other people will notice and feel sorry for you :
▪ Whenever I ask my husband to do the washing he always makes a real meal of it.
▪ There’s no need to make such a meal of it -- here, give it to me.