I. tough 1 S2 W2 /tʌf/ BrE AmE adjective ( comparative tougher , superlative toughest )
[ Word Family: adverb : ↑ toughly , ↑ tough , ↑ toughly ; verb : ↑ toughen ; noun : ↑ toughness ; adjective : ↑ tough ]
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: toh ]
1 . DIFFICULT difficult to do or deal with:
It was a tough race.
She’s had a tough life.
The company admitted that it had been a tough year.
Tough decisions will have to be made.
The reporters were asking a lot of tough questions.
have a tough time (of it) (=face a lot of difficult problems)
The family has had a tough time of it these last few months.
it’s tough doing something
It’s tough being married to a cop.
be tough on somebody (=cause problems for someone or make their life difficult)
Having to stay indoors all day is tough on a kid.
It was a tough call (=a difficult decision) , but we had to cancel the game because of the weather.
I find his books pretty tough going (=difficult to read) .
Gage predicted the president’s proposal would be a tough sell (=something that is difficult to persuade someone about) before Congress. American English
when the going gets tough (the tough get going) informal (=used to say that when a situation becomes difficult, strong people take the necessary action to deal with it)
2 . STRONG PERSON physically or emotionally strong and able to deal with difficult situations:
The men who work on the oil rigs are a tough bunch.
tough cookie/customer informal (=someone who is very determined to do what they want and not what other people want)
as tough as nails/as tough as old boots (=very tough)
He’s as tough as nails – a good man to have on the team.
3 . STRONG MATERIAL not easily broken or made weaker:
tough, durable plastic
a very tough, hard-wearing cloth
4 . STRICT/FIRM very strict or firm
tough on/with
My mother was very tough on my sister.
It’s time to get tough with drunk drivers.
The EU is taking a tough line with the UK over this issue.
5 . VIOLENT AREA a tough part of a town has a lot of crime or violence
tough neighborhood/area/part of town etc
a tough area of Chicago
6 . tough!/that’s tough! spoken used when you do not have any sympathy with someone:
‘I’m getting wet.’ ‘Tough! You should’ve brought your umbrella.’
She didn’t tell us she was coming, so if this screws up her plans that’s just tough.
7 . tough luck! spoken
a) used when you do not have any sympathy for someone’s problems:
Well, that’s just their tough luck! It was their mistake.
b) British English used when you feel sympathy about something bad that has happened to someone:
You didn’t get the job? Oh, tough luck!
8 . tough shit! spoken not polite used when you do not have any sympathy for someone’s problems
9 . VIOLENT PERSON likely to behave violently and having no gentle qualities:
one of football’s most notorious tough guys
tough young thugs looking for trouble
10 . FOOD difficult to cut or eat OPP tender :
The meat was tough and hard to chew.
the tough outer leaves of the cabbage
11 . tough love a way of helping someone to change their behaviour by treating them in a kind but strict way
—toughly adverb
—toughness noun [uncountable]
II. tough 2 BrE AmE verb
tough something ↔ out phrasal verb
to deal with a difficult situation by being determined, rather than leaving or changing your decision:
She told herself to be brave and tough it out.
III. tough 3 BrE AmE noun [countable]
old-fashioned someone who often behaves in a violent way
IV. tough 4 BrE AmE adverb
[ Word Family: adverb : ↑ toughly , ↑ tough , ↑ toughly ; verb : ↑ toughen ; noun : ↑ toughness ; adjective : ↑ tough ]
in a way that shows you are very determined:
Washington played tough in the second half of the game.
You’re talking tough now but you wait until you get into the interview.