difficult en · ADJ
Pronunciation
Etymology
From Middle English difficult (ca. 1400), a back-formation from difficulte (whence modern difficulty), from Old French difficulté, from Latin difficultas, from difficul, older form of difficilis (“hard to do, difficult”), from dis- + facilis (“easy”); see difficile. Replaced native Middle English earveþ (“difficult, hard”), from Old English earfoþe (“difficult, laborious, full of hardship”), cognate to German Arbeit (“work”). The verb is from the adjective, partly after Middle French difficulter and its etymon Latin difficultō. Compare difficilitate, difficultate, and Italian difficoltare.
Meanings
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Hard, not easy, requiring much effort.
There is not the strength or courage left me to venture into the wide, strange, difficult world, alone.
1850, Nathaniel Hawthorne, chapter 17, in The Scarlet Letter, a Romance, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, →OCLC:In adults, the same kind of anger has been studied in people trying to solve a very difficult math problem. Though the tough math problem is very frustrating, there is an active attempt to solve the problem and meet the goal.
2008, Daniel Goleman, Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama, →ISBN, page 199:However, the difficult weather conditions will ensure Yunnan has plenty of freshwater.
If they're difficult, offer them more.
difficult of accomplishment
Economics is a messy discipline: too fluid to be a science, too rigorous to be an art. Perhaps it is fitting that economists’ most-used metric, gross domestic product (GDP), is a tangle too.[…]But as a foundation for analysis it is highly subjective: it rests on difficult decisions about what counts as a territory, what counts as output and how to value it. Indeed, economists are still tweaking it.
2013 August 3, “Boundary problems”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847:
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(of a person, often, qualifier:or a horse; etc; or a horse; etc) Hard to manage, uncooperative, troublesome.
Stop being difficult and eat your broccoli—you know it's good for you.
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(obsolete) Unable or unwilling.
“I hope, madam,” said Jones, “my charming Lady Bellaston will be as difficult to believe anything against one who is so sensible of the many obligations she hath conferred upon him.”
1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| more difficult | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| most difficult | Degree=Sup | lexicographic |
Antonyms
Deriveds
difficult pill to swallow · difficultly · difficult nut to crack · superdifficult · difficultness · trifficult · undifficult · difficultate
Hyponyms
subtle · burdensome · murderous · complex · incomprehensible · killing
Relateds
nail Jell-O to a tree · backbreaking · problematic · get blood out of a stone · awkward · test · cumbersome · pull teeth · difficult situation · heavy · get blood from a stone
Synonyms
nasty · challenging · burdensome · cumbersome · arduous · unsimple · tough · difficult · effortful · rough · uneath · hard · sticky · rocky · thistly
Translations (240)
fr difficile (hard, not easy) · se váttis (hard, not easy) · wuu 難 /难 (hard, not easy) · ka მძიმე (hard, not easy) · gd trom (hard, not easy) · as টান (hard, not easy) · te కఠినమైన (hard, not easy) · mk тежок (hard, not easy) · cu тѩжькъ (hard, not easy) · got 𐌰𐌲𐌻𐌿𐍃 (hard, not easy) · gd mì-fhurasda (hard, not easy) · hy ծանր (hard, not easy) · az düşvar (hard, not easy) · mnw ဝါတ် (hard, not easy) · mn хэцүү (hard, not easy) · fa دشوار (hard, not easy) · pt difícil (hard, not easy) · cy anodd (hard, not easy) · ceb lisud (hard, not easy) · jje 어렵다 (hard, not easy) · mi whēuaua (hard, not easy) · lo ຍາກ (hard, not easy) · pt difícil (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · mi uaua (hard, not easy) · bg те́жък (hard, not easy) · grc χαλεπός (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · ps ګران (hard, not easy) · yi שווער (hard, not easy) · eo malfacila (hard, not easy) · uz murakkab (hard, not easy) · bcl dipisil (hard, not easy) · tkl fagatā (hard, not easy) · ta கடினமான (hard, not easy) · ht difisil (hard, not easy) · nl moeilijk (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · sga ansae (hard, not easy) · he קָשֶׁה (hard, not easy) · ru тяжёлый (hard, not easy) · txb waimene (hard, not easy) · es dificultoso (hard, not easy) · cy caled (hard, not easy) · mr अवघड (hard, not easy) · gl arrevesado (hard, not easy) · de schwer (hard, not easy) · tr çetin (hard, not easy) · bo ཁག་པོ (hard, not easy) · ur مشکل (hard, not easy) · ug قىيىن (hard, not easy) · egy q-qs-n:nDs (hard, not easy) · fo torførur (hard, not easy) · cs těžký (hard, not easy) · cho pʋlʋmmi (hard, not easy) · ba ҡыйын (hard, not easy) · de schwierig (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · to faingataʻa (hard, not easy) · kl sapernarpoq (hard, not easy) · ko 힘들다 (hard, not easy) · ota دشوار (hard, not easy) · mn хүчир (hard, not easy) · km ពិបាក (hard, not easy) · inh хала (hard, not easy) · grc χαλεπός (hard, not easy) · ky кыйын (hard, not easy) · tk müçgil (hard, not easy) · gd duilich (hard, not easy) · mwl defícel (hard, not easy) · kxd payah (hard, not easy) · lt sunkus (hard, not easy) · bg мъ́чен (hard, not easy) · bg тру́ден (hard, not easy) · lv grūts (hard, not easy) · mn хүнд (hard, not easy) · ka ძნელი (hard, not easy) · gl difícil (hard, not easy) · gv doillee (hard, not easy) · tk çatak (hard, not easy) · ccc yeewa (hard, not easy) · ia difficile (hard, not easy) · bo དཀའ་ངལ་ཅན (hard, not easy) · tr kıyın (hard, not easy) · fa مشکل (hard, not easy) · io desfacila (hard, not easy) · kn ಕಟ್ (hard, not easy) · fi hankala (hard, not easy) · ky оор (hard, not easy) · grc δυσχερής (hard, not easy) · cmn 難 /难 (hard, not easy) · qu sasa (hard, not easy) · ur کٹھن (hard, not easy) · az çətin (hard, not easy) · crh qıyın (hard, not easy) · gu કઠિન (hard, not easy) · tg сахт (hard, not easy) · kea rabés (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · sv svår (hard, not easy) · is erfiður (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · si අමාරු (hard, not easy) · be тру́дны (hard, not easy) · lv sarežģīts (hard, not easy) · tet susar (hard, not easy) · yue 難 /难 (hard, not easy) · de schwierig (hard, not easy) · ba ауыр (hard, not easy) · kea puxadu (hard, not easy) · ro dificil (hard, not easy) · uz mushkul (hard, not easy) · hi दुश्वार (hard, not easy) · br diaes (hard, not easy) · gv creoi (hard, not easy) · bo དཀའ་ལས་ཁག་པོ (hard, not easy) · ar صَعْب (hard, not easy) · tr zor (hard, not easy) · es difícil (hard, not easy) · ary واعر (hard, not easy) · ka რთული (hard, not easy) · tk çetin (hard, not easy) · eu nekez (hard, not easy) · fa سخت (hard, not easy) · mn бэрх (hard, not easy) · oc dificil (hard, not easy) · kea pexóde (hard, not easy) · cmn 艱難 /艰难 (hard, not easy) · bcl masakit (hard, not easy) · fa صعب (hard, not easy) · ca difícil (hard, not easy) · th ลำบาก (hard, not easy) · tg душвор (hard, not easy) · tr ağır (hard, not easy) · yi האַרב (hard, not easy) · hsb ćežki (hard, not easy) · bo དཀའ་མོ (hard, not easy) · ilo narigat (hard, not easy) · ga deacair (hard, not easy) · ru тя́жкий (hard, not easy) · mi taumaha hārukiruki (hard, not easy) · gv neuaashagh (hard, not easy) · he מסובך (hard, not easy) · ro greu (hard, not easy) · ps مشکل (hard, not easy) · mk мачен (hard, not easy) · ms sukar (hard, not easy) · ckb گران (hard, not easy) · tk kyn (hard, not easy) · nl moeilijk (hard, not easy) · hi कठिन (hard, not easy) · vi khó khăn (hard, not easy) · sm faigatā (hard, not easy) · is erfiður (hard, not easy) · no vanskelig (hard, not easy) · uk трудни́й (hard, not easy) · ug مۈشكۈل (hard, not easy) · lad zor (hard, not easy) · my ခဲယဉ်း (hard, not easy) · txb āmāskai (hard, not easy) · ms susah (hard, not easy) · uk важки́й (hard, not easy) · id susah (hard, not easy) · gv mooar (hard, not easy) · pl trudny (hard, not easy) · hy դժվար (hard, not easy) · af moeilik (hard, not easy) · nv nantłʼah (hard, not easy) · tyz cáo quán (hard, not easy) · ko 어렵다 (hard, not easy) · eu zail (hard, not easy) · ru тру́дный (hard, not easy) · te కష్టమైన (hard, not easy) · id sukar (hard, not easy) · ee sẽ̌ (hard, not easy) · jje 심들다 (hard, not easy) · tr güç (hard, not easy) · ce хала (hard, not easy) · tt авыр (hard, not easy) · ur دشوار (hard, not easy) · tr düşvar (hard, not easy) · et keeruline (hard, not easy) · kk ауыр (hard, not easy) · gd doirbh (hard, not easy) · sa कठिन (hard, not easy) · oc malaisit (hard, not easy) · sl težek (hard, not easy) · ckb سەخت (hard, not easy) · tl mahirap (hard, not easy) · bn কঠিন (hard, not easy) · tg мушкил (hard, not easy) · tr müşkül (hard, not easy) · vi khó (hard, not easy) · km យ៉ាប់ (hard, not easy) · sh тежак (hard, not easy) · vo fikulik (hard, not easy) · hi मुश्किल (hard, not easy) · ang earfoþe (hard, not easy) · el δύσκολος (hard, not easy) · be ця́жкі (hard, not easy) · ckb زەحمەت (hard, not easy) · am አስቸጋሪ (hard, not easy) · ru сло́жный (hard, not easy) · cs obtížný (hard, not easy) · ckt аӈъачеты (hard, not easy) · ty fifi (hard, not easy) · yo le (hard, not easy) · la difficilis (hard, not easy) · hi विकट (hard, not easy) · hi दूभर (hard, not easy) · chr ᏍᏓᏯ (hard, not easy) · yue 困難 /困难 (hard, not easy) · fy swier (hard, not easy) · id sulit (hard, not easy) · gd cruaidh (hard, not easy) · lad difísil (hard, not easy) · mt diffiċli (hard, not easy) · th ยาก (hard, not easy) · gv trome (hard, not easy) · da vanskelig (hard, not easy) · ro complicat (hard, not easy) · sq i vështirë (hard, not easy) · la difficilis (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · chr ᎤᏦᏍᏗ (hard, not easy) · ja 困難な (hard, not easy) · ja 難しい (hard, not easy) · cmn 困難 /困难 (hard, not easy) · ast difícil (hard, not easy) · it difficile (hard, not easy) · kix tshīk (hard, not easy) · fi vaikea (hard, not easy) · uz qiyin (hard, not easy) · my ခက် (hard, not easy) · sh težak (hard, not easy) · sk obtiažny (hard, not easy) · hy բարդ (hard, not easy) · kk қиын (hard, not easy) · hu nehéz (hard, not easy) · mr कठीण (hard, not easy) · pl ciężki (hard, not easy) · tt кыен (hard, not easy) · sk ťažký (hard, not easy) · ga ciotach (hard to manage (said of a person, horse, etc.)) · ro anevoios (hard, not easy) · kea rabés (hard, not easy) · pa ਕਠਿਨ (hard, not easy)