tough Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun someone who learned to fight in the streets rather than being formally trained in the sport of boxing
    street fighter.
  2. noun an aggressive and violent young criminal
    strong-armer; goon; punk; hoodlum; thug; toughie; hood.
  3. noun a cruel and brutal fellow
    yobo; ruffian; bully; roughneck; hooligan; rowdy; yob; yobbo.
  4. adjective not given to gentleness or sentimentality
    • a tough character
  5. adjective satellite very difficult; severely testing stamina or resolution
    rugged.
    • a rugged competitive examination
    • the rugged conditions of frontier life
    • the competition was tough
    • it's a tough life
    • it was a tough job
  6. adjective physically toughened
    toughened.
    • the tough bottoms of his feet
  7. adjective satellite substantially made or constructed
    sturdy.
    • sturdy steel shelves
    • sturdy canvas
    • a tough all-weather fabric
    • some plastics are as tough as metal
  8. adjective satellite violent and lawless
    ruffianly.
    • the more ruffianly element
    • tough street gangs
  9. adjective satellite feeling physical discomfort or pain (`tough' is occasionally used colloquially for `bad')
    bad.
    • my throat feels bad
    • she felt bad all over
    • he was feeling tough after a restless night
  10. adjective resistant to cutting or chewing
  11. adjective satellite unfortunate or hard to bear
    hard.
    • had hard luck
    • a tough break
  12. adjective satellite making great mental demands; hard to comprehend or solve or believe
    problematic; elusive; baffling; problematical; knotty.
    • a baffling problem
    • I faced the knotty problem of what to have for breakfast
    • a problematic situation at home

WordNet

Tough adjective
Etymology
OE. tough, AS. t&omac;h, akin to D. taai, LG. taa, tage, tau, OHG. z&amac;hi, G. z&aum;he, and also to AS. getenge near to, close to, oppressive, OS. bitengi.
Wordforms
comparative Tougher ; superlative Toughest
Definitions
  1. Having the quality of flexibility without brittleness; yielding to force without breaking; capable of resisting great strain; as, the ligaments of animals are remarkably tough. "Tough roots and stubs. " Milton.
  2. Not easily broken; able to endure hardship; firm; strong; as, tough sinews. Cowper.
    A body made of brass, the crone demands, . . . Tough to the last, and with no toil to tire. Dryden.
    The basis of his character was caution combined with tough tenacity of purpose. J. A. Symonds.
  3. Not easily separated; viscous; clammy; tenacious; as, tough phlegm.
  4. Stiff; rigid; not flexible; stubborn; as, a tough bow.
    So tough a frame she could not bend. Dryden.
  5. Severe; violent; as, a tough storm. Colloq. " A tough debate. " Fuller. Chaucer.

Webster 1913