difficulty
noun
dif·fi·cul·ty
ˈdi-fi-(ˌ)kəl-tē 
plural difficulties
1
: the quality or state of being hard to do, deal with, or understand : the quality or state of being difficult
underestimated the difficulty of the task
has difficulty reading
climbs stairs with difficulty
2
: controversy, disagreement
unable to resolve their difficulties
3
: objection
made no difficulty in granting the request
4
: something difficult : impediment
encountering difficulties along the way
5
: embarrassment, trouble
—usually used in plural
financial difficulties
Examples of difficulty in a Sentence
She underestimated the difficulty of saving so much money.
the many difficulties that he encountered on the road from poor orphan to head of a major corporation
Recent Examples on the Web
The inherent difficulty of coming of age is shared in a piece that tracks the movement from innocence to experience.
—
Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2024
The Husbands is — in part — about the difficulty of making decisions, about feeling frozen in the face of too many options.
—Holly Gramazio, Peoplemag, 24 Apr. 2024
Many disabled Americans and seniors, especially those who live alone, have difficulties cooking or driving to the store and rely on fast and simple delivery services like Instacart or Uber Eats for fresh ingredients and balanced meals.
—Adam Kovacevich, Fortune, 24 Apr. 2024
What the analysts say Daniel Ives, managing director and senior equity analyst at Wedbush Securities, said after difficulties with launching its newer EVs, stop-sales and parts shortages in recent years, this was the quarter for GM to turn things around.
—Detroit Free Press, 23 Apr. 2024
That was one of several throws Nelson made Saturday that ranked pretty high on the difficulty scale.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 20 Apr. 2024
Despite all the horrors and difficulties, Yana set a big goal for herself.
—Yulia Drozd, ABC News, 19 Apr. 2024
However, the lyrics are largely concerned with the difficulties of staying friends with someone after a breakup, and even politely sharing mutual family time.
—William Earl, Variety, 19 Apr. 2024
Mining difficulty, a measure of computing power to mine Bitcoin, has swelled almost sixfold since the 2020 halving, according to a biweekly update from crypto-mining website btc.com.
—David Pan, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2024
Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 26 Apr. 2024
The Husbands is — in part — about the difficulty of making decisions, about feeling frozen in the face of too many options.
—Holly Gramazio, Peoplemag, 24 Apr. 2024
Many disabled Americans and seniors, especially those who live alone, have difficulties cooking or driving to the store and rely on fast and simple delivery services like Instacart or Uber Eats for fresh ingredients and balanced meals.
—Adam Kovacevich, Fortune, 24 Apr. 2024
What the analysts say Daniel Ives, managing director and senior equity analyst at Wedbush Securities, said after difficulties with launching its newer EVs, stop-sales and parts shortages in recent years, this was the quarter for GM to turn things around.
—Detroit Free Press, 23 Apr. 2024
That was one of several throws Nelson made Saturday that ranked pretty high on the difficulty scale.
—Ron Counts, Idaho Statesman, 20 Apr. 2024
Despite all the horrors and difficulties, Yana set a big goal for herself.
—Yulia Drozd, ABC News, 19 Apr. 2024
However, the lyrics are largely concerned with the difficulties of staying friends with someone after a breakup, and even politely sharing mutual family time.
—William Earl, Variety, 19 Apr. 2024
Mining difficulty, a measure of computing power to mine Bitcoin, has swelled almost sixfold since the 2020 halving, according to a biweekly update from crypto-mining website btc.com.
—David Pan, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'difficulty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near difficulty
Cite this Entry
“Difficulty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/difficulty. Accessed 29 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
difficulty
noun
dif·fi·cul·ty
ˈdif-ə-(ˌ)kəl-tē
plural difficulties
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