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Challenging vs. Tough — What's the Difference?

Challenging vs. Tough — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Challenging and Tough

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Challenging

Requiring the full application of one's abilities, attention, or resources
A challenging role for an inexperienced performer.
A challenging homework assignment.

Tough

(of a substance or object) strong enough to withstand adverse conditions or rough handling
Tough rucksacks for climbers

Challenging

Present participle of challenge

Tough

Able to endure hardship or pain
She was as tough as old boots

Challenging

Difficult, hard to do.
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Tough

Demonstrating a strict and uncompromising approach
Police have been getting tough with drivers
Tough new laws on tobacco advertising

Challenging

The act of making a challenge.

Tough

Strong and prone to violence
Tough young teenagers

Challenging

Requiring full use of one's abilities or resources; as, challenging task.

Tough

A rough and violent man
A gang of toughs

Challenging

Disposed to or engaged in defiance of established authority.

Tough

Endure a period of hardship or difficulty.

Challenging

Requiring full use of your abilities or resources;
Ambitious schedule
Performed the most challenging task without a mistake

Tough

Able to withstand great strain without tearing or breaking; strong and resilient
A tough all-weather fabric.

Challenging

Stimulating interest or thought;
A challenging hypothesis
A thought-provoking book

Tough

Hard to cut or chew
Tough meat.

Challenging

Disturbingly provocative;
An intriguing smile

Tough

Physically hardy; rugged
Tough mountaineers.
A tough cop.

Tough

Strong-minded; resolute
A tough negotiator.

Tough

Aggressive; pugnacious.

Tough

Inclined to violent or disruptive behavior; rowdy or rough
A tough street group.

Tough

Difficult to endure; severe; harsh
A tough winter.

Tough

Trying or unpleasant
Had a tough day.

Tough

Difficult to deal with; demanding or troubling
It's tough to go to school and work a full-time job. The exam had many tough questions.

Tough

(Informal) Unfortunate; too bad
It was a tough break to get sick on the day of the concert.

Tough

(Slang) Fine; great.

Tough

A violent or rowdy person; a hoodlum or thug.

Tough

(of a material) Strong and resilient; sturdy.
The tent, made of tough canvas, held up to many abuses.

Tough

(of food) Difficult to cut or chew.
To soften a tough cut of meat, the recipe suggested simmering it for hours.

Tough

(of a person or animal) Rugged or physically hardy.
Only a tough species will survive in the desert.

Tough

(of a person) Stubborn or persistent; capable of stubbornness or persistence.
He had a reputation as a tough negotiator.

Tough

(of weather, etc.) Harsh or severe.

Tough

Rowdy or rough.
A bunch of the tough boys from the wrong side of the tracks threatened him.

Tough

(of questions, etc.) Difficult or demanding.
This is a tough crowd.

Tough

(material science) Undergoing plastic deformation before breaking.

Tough

(slang) Used to indicate lack of sympathy
If you don't like it, tough!

Tough

A person who obtains things by force; a thug or bully.
They were doing fine until they encountered a bunch of toughs from the opposition.

Tough

To endure.

Tough

To toughen.

Tough

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

Not easily broken; able to endure hardship; firm; strong; - of objects and people; as, tough sinews.
A body made of brass, the crone demands, . . . Tough to the last, and with no toil to tire.
The basis of his character was caution combined with tough tenacity of purpose.

Tough

Not easily separated; viscous; clammy; tenacious; as, tough phlegm.

Tough

Stiff; rigid; not flexible; stubborn; as, a tough bow.
So tough a frame she could not bend.

Tough

Severe; violent; as, a tough storm.

Tough

Difficult to do, perform, or accomplish; as, a tough job.

Tough

Prone to aggressive or violent behavior; rowdyish; - of people, or groups; as, a tough neighborhood; a tough character.

Tough

A person who is tough{7}; a ruffian; a thug; as, a cluster of neighborhood toughs hanging out on the corner.

Tough

Someone who learned to fight in the streets rather than being formally trained in the sport of boxing

Tough

An aggressive and violent young criminal

Tough

A cruel and brutal fellow

Tough

Not given to gentleness or sentimentality;
A tough character

Tough

Very difficult; severely testing stamina or resolution;
A rugged competitive examination
The rugged conditions of frontier life
The competition was tough
It's a tough life
It was a tough job

Tough

Physically toughened;
The tough bottoms of his feet

Tough

Substantially made or constructed;
Sturdy steel shelves
Sturdy canvas
A tough all-weather fabric
Some plastics are as tough as metal

Tough

Violent and lawless;
The more ruffianly element
Tough street gangs

Tough

Feeling physical discomfort or pain (`tough' is occasionally used colloquially for `bad');
My throat feels bad
She felt bad all over
He was feeling tough after a restless night

Tough

Tough to cut or chew

Tough

Unfortunate or hard to bear;
Had hard luck
A tough break

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