Synonyms for difficult
ˈdɪf ɪˌkʌlt, -kəltdif·fi·cult

WiktionaryRate these synonyms:2.0 / 1 vote

1. difficultadjective

   Synonyms:
   cumbersome, hard, burdensome

2. difficultadjective

   hard, not easy, requiring much effort

   Synonyms:
   cumbersome, burdensome, hard

3. difficultadjective

   hard to manage, uncooperative, troublesome; eg. said of a person, a horse, etc.

   Synonyms:
   burdensome, hard, cumbersome

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:2.7 / 3 votes

1. 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, trying

   Antonyms:
   easy, facile, light, pleasant, slight, trifling, trivial

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. difficult

   Synonyms:
   hard, intricate, involved, perplexing, enigmatical, obscure, trying, arduous, troublesome, up hill, unmanageable, unamenable, reserved, opposed

   Antonyms:
   easy, plain, straight, pimple, lucid, categorical, tractable, amenable, unreserved, favorable

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:5.0 / 2 votes

1. difficult, hardadjective

   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, unmanageable

   Antonyms:
   uncomplicated, cushy, casual, hands-down, soft, clean, effortless, unproblematic, smooth, simple, easy, painless, simplified, elementary, user-friendly, easygoing

2. unmanageable, difficultadjective

   hard to control

   "a difficult child", "an unmanageable situation"

   Synonyms:
   uncorrectable, uncontrollable, hard, unwieldy, unmanageable

   Antonyms:
   easy, hands-down, cushy, clean, simple, uncomplicated, user-friendly, elementary, casual, unproblematic, painless, smooth, easygoing, simplified, soft, effortless

Editors ContributionRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. ardouos

   Submitted by anonymous on December 16, 2019  

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. difficultadjective

   Synonyms:
   hard, arduous. herculean, up-hill, beset with difficulty

2. difficultadjective

   Synonyms:
   austere, rigid, unyielding, unaccommodating

3. difficultadjective

   Synonyms:
   fastidious, dainty, squeamish, hard to please

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. difficultadjective

   Synonyms:
   arduous, onerous, complicated, intricate, hard, uncompliant, intractable, perverse, fastidious, exacting

   Antonyms:
   facile, light, easy

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:5.0 / 1 vote

1. 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

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How to use difficult in a sentence?

1. Abraham Lincoln:

   It is difficult to make a man miserable while he feels worthy of himself and claims kindred to the great God who made him.

2. Sallust:

   For men who had easily endured hardship, danger and difficult uncertainty, leisure and riches, though in some ways desirable, proved burdensome and a source of grief.

3. Mike Gallagher:

   There's more air defense weapons we can give them. We're talking about transferring the Switchblade 300 system, i think we still do a ton in order to give him what he needs to make this extremely difficult for the Russians and force them to back down, even if we don't go so far as to impose a no-fly zone.

4. Agriculture Phung Duc Tien:

   If it spreads further, it will be very difficult to contain.

5. Brian Flores:

   I think race played a role in my firing, what I mean by that is, there were things I was asked to do. There were conversations that were had. I was made out to be a difficult person to work with. I think my white counterparts wouldn’t have been asked to do the things I was asked to do.