What are some alternative words for difficult?
Synonyms for difficult
ˈdɪf ɪˌkʌlt, -kəlt
This thesaurus page is about all possible synonyms, equivalent, same meaning and similar words for the term difficult.
Princeton's WordNet
difficult, hard(adj)
not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure
"a difficult task"; "nesting places on the cliffs are difficult of access"; "difficult times"; "why is it so hard for you to keep a secret?"
Synonyms:
severe, voiceless, arduous, grueling, tough, toilsome, concentrated, heavy, laborious, hard, gruelling, intemperate, knockout, punishing, unvoiced, operose, backbreaking, surd, strong, unmanageableAntonyms:
uncomplicated, cushy, casual, hands-down, soft, clean, effortless, unproblematic, smooth, simple, easy, painless, simplified, elementary, user-friendly, easygoingunmanageable, difficult(adj)
hard to control
"a difficult child", "an unmanageable situation"
Synonyms:
uncorrectable, uncontrollable, hard, unwieldy, unmanageableAntonyms:
easy, hands-down, cushy, clean, simple, uncomplicated, user-friendly, elementary, casual, unproblematic, painless, smooth, easygoing, simplified, soft, effortless
Wiktionary
difficult(adjective)
Synonyms:
cumbersome, hard, burdensomedifficult(adjective)
hard, not easy, requiring much effort
Synonyms:
cumbersome, burdensome, harddifficult(adjective)
hard to manage, uncooperative, troublesome; eg. said of a person, a horse, etc.
Synonyms:
burdensome, hard, cumbersome
English Synonyms and Antonyms
difficult
Arduous (Latin arduus, steep) signifies primarily so steep and lofty as to be difficult of ascent, and hence applies to that which involves great and sustained exertion and ordinarily for a lofty aim; great learning can only be won by arduous toil. Hard applies to anything that resists our endeavors as a scarcely penetrable mass resists our physical force. Anything is hard that involves tax and strain whether of the physical or mental powers. Difficult is not used of that which merely taxes physical force; a dead lift is called hard rather than difficult; breaking stone on the road would be called hard rather than difficult work; that is difficult which involves skill, sagacity, or address, with or without a considerable expenditure of physical force; a geometrical problem may be difficult to solve, a tangled skein to unravel; a mountain difficult to ascend. Hard may be active or passive; a thing may be hard to do or hard to bear. Arduous is always active. That which is laborious or toilsome simply requires the steady application of labor or toil till accomplished; toilsome is the stronger word. That which is onerous (Latin onus, a burden) is mentally burdensome or oppressive. Responsibility may be onerous even when it involves no special exertion.
Synonyms:
arduous, exhausting, hard, laborious, onerous, severe, toilsome, tryingAntonyms:
easy, facile, light, pleasant, slight, trifling, trivial
Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and Antonyms
difficult
Synonyms:
hard, intricate, involved, perplexing, enigmatical, obscure, trying, arduous, troublesome, up hill, unmanageable, unamenable, reserved, opposedAntonyms:
easy, plain, straight, pimple, lucid, categorical, tractable, amenable, unreserved, favorable
Editors Contribution
ardouos
Dictionary of English Synonymes
difficult(a.)
Synonyms:
hard, arduous. herculean, up-hill, beset with difficultydifficult(a.)
Synonyms:
austere, rigid, unyielding, unaccommodatingdifficult(a.)
Synonyms:
fastidious, dainty, squeamish, hard to please
Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated Words
difficult(a)
Synonyms:
arduous, onerous, complicated, intricate, hard, uncompliant, intractable, perverse, fastidious, exacting
PPDB, the paraphrase database
List of paraphrases for "difficult":
hard, challenging, tough, difficulty, arduous, complicated, difficulties, difficile, complex, tricky, thorny, problematic, delicate, harsh, hardship, easy, awkward, daunting, intractable, challenge, heavy, laborious, picky, painful, uphill, sensitive, dire, demanding, onerous, cumbersome, troubled, troublesome, painstaking, elusive, serious
Words popularity by usage frequency
ranking | word | |
---|---|---|
#258 | reserved | |
#596 | hard | |
#621 | easy | |
#1340 | strong | |
#1376 | involved | |
#1429 | trying | |
#1758 | complex | |
#1928 | difficult | |
#2107 | serious | |
#2145 | heavy | |
#2185 | challenge | |
#3826 | sensitive | |
#3964 | severe | |
#4924 | tough | |
#5311 | difficulty | |
#5975 | difficulties | |
#6114 | opposed | |
#6722 | challenging | |
#7037 | complicated | |
#9372 | painful | |
#9543 | demanding | |
#10268 | concentrated | |
#11437 | harsh | |
#11658 | delicate | |
#11950 | troubled | |
#13380 | obscure | |
#14988 | problematic | |
#15928 | tricky | |
#16120 | dire | |
#17452 | awkward | |
#18786 | hardship | |
#20086 | intricate | |
#20139 | elusive | |
#22594 | daunting | |
#24199 | knockout | |
#26847 | troublesome | |
#27419 | cumbersome | |
#28813 | uphill | |
#32099 | picky | |
#32471 | punishing | |
#37611 | exhausting | |
#38128 | burdensome | |
#40751 | uncontrollable | |
#40798 | arduous | |
#42553 | onerous | |
#42831 | intractable | |
#48883 | thorny | |
#52801 | grueling | |
#53660 | laborious | |
#53854 | perplexing | |
#54309 | painstaking | |
#58750 | unwieldy | |
#64747 | unmanageable | |
#67165 | difficile | |
#69752 | voiceless | |
#90856 | gruelling | |
#127101 | intemperate | |
#180754 | unvoiced | |
#183574 | backbreaking | |
#212583 | uncorrectable | |
#218887 | toilsome | |
#315651 | surd |
How to use difficult in a sentence?
I made the difficult decision to leave Generation Opportunity because I was really excited about a new project that I'll be leading, i look forward to telling the world about it.
I know the history of my relationship with him, i know it was complicated and difficult. That doesn't change the fact that he raped me.
Puerto Rico is now in very, very difficult straits. People are leaving the island, unemployment is high, schools are being closed, bottom line is you cannot get blood from a stone. You can't push more austerity on a people who are already hurting. The goal is to rebuild the economy.
It's difficult to assess - it will depend on whether they can reach an agreement in the short run, i wouldn't be surprised to see some refocusing in Qatar if the situation continues.
While sometimes things look bleak and difficult, there’s opportunity in everything, and you have to find the opportunity, you have to work to do that with creative leadership, i am absolutely confident that if people approach this thoughtfully, studiously, soberly, with creativity, there is a way to find strength out of whatever we do ahead.
Translations for difficult
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- moeilikAfrikaans
- صعبArabic
- çətinAzerbaijani
- ҡыйын, ауырBashkir
- цяжкі, трудныBelarusian
- труден, мъчен, тежъкBulgarian
- কঠিনBengali
- དཀའ་ངལ་ཅན, དཀའ་མོ, ཁག་པོ, དཀའ་ལས་ཁག་པོTibetan Standard
- difícilCatalan, Valencian
- obtížný, těžkýCzech
- тѩжькъOld Church Slavonic, Church Slavonic, Old Bulgarian
- caled, anoddWelsh
- vanskeligDanish
- schwer, schwierigGerman
- δύσκολοςGreek
- malfacilaEsperanto
- difícilSpanish
- keerulineEstonian
- سخت, صعب, دشوار, مشکلPersian
- vaikea, hankalaFinnish
- torførurFaroese
- difficileFrench
- swierWestern Frisian
- deacairIrish
- cruaidh, trom, doirbh, mì-fhurasda, duilichScottish Gaelic
- difícilGalician
- કઠિનGujarati
- doillee, trome, mooar, creoi, neuaashaghManx
- מסובך, קשהHebrew
- कठिन, मुश्किल, विकटHindi
- difisilHaitian Creole
- nehézHungarian
- դժվար, ծանր, բարդArmenian
- difficileInterlingua
- desfacilaIdo
- erfiðurIcelandic
- difficileItalian
- 困難, 難しいJapanese
- ძნელიGeorgian
- ауыр, қиынKazakh
- ពិបាកKhmer
- ಕಟ್Kannada
- 어렵다Korean
- زهحمهت, سهخت, گرانKurdish
- кыйын, оорKyrgyz
- difficilisLatin
- ຍາກLao
- sunkusLithuanian
- sarežģītsLatvian
- тежок, маченMacedonian
- бэрх, хүнд хэцүүMongolian
- diffiċliMaltese
- ခဲယဉ်းBurmese
- lastig, moeilijkDutch
- vanskeligNorwegian
- nantłʼahNavajo, Navaho
- malaisitOccitan
- ਕਠਿਨPanjabi, Punjabi
- trudny, ciężkiPolish
- ګران, مشکلPashto, Pushto
- difícilPortuguese
- difícil, greu, anevoios, complicatRomanian
- тяжкий, трудный, тяжёлыйRussian
- कठिनSanskrit
- težak, тежакSerbo-Croatian
- අමාරුSinhala, Sinhalese
- obtiažny, ťažkýSlovak
- težekSlovene
- vështirëAlbanian
- svårSwedish
- கடினமானTamil
- కఠినమైన, కష్టమైనTelugu
- душвор, мушкил, сахтTajik
- ยากThai
- çatak, müçgil, çetin, kynTurkmen
- mahirapTagalog
- zor, güçTurkish
- кыен, авырTatar
- трудний, важкийUkrainian
- دشوار, کٹھن, مشکلUrdu
- qiyin, mushkulUzbek
- khó, khó khănVietnamese
- שווער, האַרבYiddish
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Translation
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- Latinum (Latin)
- Svenska (Swedish)
- Dansk (Danish)
- Suomi (Finnish)
- فارسی (Persian)
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Citation
Use the citation below to add these synonyms to your bibliography:
"difficult." Synonyms.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2021. Web. 5 Mar. 2021. <https://www.synonyms.com/synonym/difficult>.