Definitions for difficulty
ˈdɪf ɪˌkʌl ti, -kəl tidif·fi·cul·ty

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. trouble, difficultynoun

   an effort that is inconvenient

   "I went to a lot of trouble"; "he won without any trouble"; "had difficulty walking"; "finished the test only with great difficulty"

2. difficultynoun

   a factor causing trouble in achieving a positive result or tending to produce a negative result

   "serious difficulties were encountered in obtaining a pure reagent"

3. difficultynoun

   a condition or state of affairs almost beyond one's ability to deal with and requiring great effort to bear or overcome

   "grappling with financial difficulties"

4. difficulty, difficultnessnoun

   the quality of being difficult

   "they agreed about the difficulty of the climb"

WiktionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. difficultynoun

   The state of being difficult, or hard to do.

2. difficultynoun

   An obstacle that hinders achievement of a goal.

   We faced a difficulty.

3. Etymology: From difficultee, from difficulté, from difficultas, from difficul, older form of difficilis, from dis- + facilis; see difficile and difficult.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Difficultynoun

   Etymology: from difficult; difficultè, French.

   1. Hardness; contrariety to easiness or facility.

   The religion which, by this covenant, we engage ourselves to observe, is a work of labour and difficulty; a service that requires our greatest care and attention to the discharge of it. John Rogers, Serm. 13.

   2. That which is hard to accomplish; that which is not easy.

   They mistake difficulties for impossibilities: a pernicious mistake certainly; and the more pernicious, for that men are seldom convinced of it, ’till their convictions do them no good. Robert South, Sermons.

   3. Distress; opposition.

   Thus, by degrees, he rose to Jove’s imperial seat:
   Thus difficulties prove a soul legitimately great. Dryden.

   4. Perplexity in affairs; uneasiness of circumstances.

   They lie at present under some difficulties, by reason of the emperor’s displeasure, who has forbidden the importation of their manufactures. Joseph Addison, on Italy.

   5. Objection; cavil.

   Men should consider, that raising difficulties concerning the mysteries in religion, cannot make them more wise, learned, or virtuous. Jonathan Swift.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. difficulty

   Difficulty refers to the level of challenge, complexity, hardness, or obstacle present in a task, situation or process. It indicates the effort, skill, time, or resources required to complete a task or overcome a problem.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Difficultynoun

   the state of being difficult, or hard to do; hardness; arduousness; -- opposed to easiness or facility; as, the difficulty of a task or enterprise; a work of difficulty

2. Difficultynoun

   something difficult; a thing hard to do or to understand; that which occasions labor or perplexity, and requires skill and perseverance to overcome, solve, or achieve; a hard enterprise; an obstacle; an impediment; as, the difficulties of a science; difficulties in theology

3. Difficultynoun

   a controversy; a falling out; a disagreement; an objection; a cavil

4. Difficultynoun

   embarrassment of affairs, especially financial affairs; -- usually in the plural; as, to be in difficulties

Dictionary of Nautical TermsRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. difficulty

   A word unknown to true salts.

Matched Categories

1. • Cognitive Factor
   • Condition
   • Effort
   • Quality

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'difficulty' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #1652

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'difficulty' in Written Corpus Frequency: #1772

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'difficulty' in Nouns Frequency: #323

How to pronounce difficulty?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say difficulty in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of difficulty in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of difficulty in Pythagorean Numerology is: 7

Examples of difficulty in a Sentence

1. Elena Kagan:

   I have difficulty with that hypothetical.

2. Goa Kerle:

   I am never bothered by the difficulty of my goal and magnitude of my challenges, I am concerned with whether I am fit enough for the journey towards my goal and with whether I am strong & equipped enough to overcome any challenge.

3. Pat Carey:

   I think this referendum will be won by the mothers of Ireland, maybe my perspective might be helpful to people my age. I'd say there are lots of men and women of my generation who have the same difficulty that I had in trying to come to terms with how you articulate your gender issues.

4. Daniel Robinson:

   Innovation is happening in small, agile startups such as Red 6 that are going at the speed of heat, then you have these companies that are so disruptive, making technology so quickly trying to mesh with the behemoth that is the Department of Defense that doesn't know how to fully plug these technologies into a largely bureaucratic system, and that leads to … conflict and to difficulty in terms of taking innovative technologies and getting them to the war fighter very, very quickly.

5. Amotz Asa-El:

   It's hard to say exactly how long this (coalition) will last, but it's not viable, it will be short-lived, laden with difficulty and will end in a unity deal with Herzog.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=difficulty
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Difficulty
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=difficulty
4. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
5. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/difficulty
6. ^ Dictionary of Nautical Terms
   https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/26000/pg26000-images.html#:~:text=difficulty