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having or causing problems or difficulties 艱苦的；艱難的；棘手的 a tough childhood 苦難的童年 It was a tough decision to make. 那是個很難作的決定。 During the interview I was asked some really tough questions. 面試時，有人問了我一些非常棘手的問題。 Now Karen must make one of the toughest choices of her life. 現在凱倫必須做出她一生中最艱難的選擇之一。 She's been having a tough time of it (= a lot of problems) lately. 她最近的日子一直很難熬。 Times are tough at the moment. 眼下時局艱難。 We've got a tough fight ahead. 我們前面還有一場艱苦的戰鬥。 He faces the toughest test of his leadership so far. 他面臨迄今爲止對自己的領導工作最嚴峻的考驗。 What was the toughest job you ever had? 你做過的最艱難的工作是什麽？ a tough task 艱巨的任務 It can be tough trying to juggle a career and a family. 要事業家庭兩不誤，有時會很艱難。 He faces tough competition from the rest of the team. 他面臨着來自團隊其他成員的激烈競爭。 - tough on somebody
Puberty can be tough on kids. 青春期對孩子來說很艱難。 I knew she was going to be tough to beat. 我知道她會很難被打敗。
Extra ExamplesHe may find it tough to pursue his plans. 他可能會發現很難繼續他的計劃。 The strong dollar has made it tough for small businesses. 強勢美元使小企業的日子不好過。 Things were pretty tough at first. 起初事情有點棘手。 It's tough out there in the real world. 外面的現實世界有很多不如意。 The next couple of months will be tough, but I'm sure we'll cope. 接下來的幾個月會很艱難，但我相信我們會應付的。 It's very tough on the wives when the husbands go off like that. 丈夫那樣離開會造成妻子的處境很困難。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- seem
- get
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- on
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demanding that particular rules be obeyed and showing a lack of sympathy for any problems that this may cause 嚴厲的；強硬的；無情的 - tough with somebody/something
It's about time teachers started to get tough with bullies. 現在教師要對橫行霸道的學生開始采取嚴厲措施了。 - tough on somebody/something
Politicians believe they have to be tough on crime. 政客們認爲他們必須嚴厲打擊犯罪。 Don't be too tough on him—he was only trying to help. 别對他要求過高，他只是想幫忙。 The school takes a tough line on (= punishes severely) cheating. 學校對作弊行爲的懲罰很嚴厲。 The president is well known for his tough stance on immigrants and asylum-seekers. 總統以其對移民和尋求庇護者的強硬立場而聞名。 tough new anti-terror measures 嚴厲的新反恐措施 Local traders are calling for tougher action against vandals. 當地商人呼籲對破壞者采取更嚴厲的行動。
Extra ExamplesHas the government been tough enough on polluters? 政府對造成污染者的態度夠強硬嗎？ The government has promised to get tough on crime. 政府已經承諾要嚴厲打擊犯罪。 You have to be tough with these young thugs. 對這些年紀輕輕的暴徒態度一定要強硬。 There will be tough new controls on car emissions. 對汽車尾氣的排放量將有新的嚴格控制。 We must take a tough stance against terrorism. 我們一定要采取強硬立場反對恐怖主義。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- become
- get
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- on
- with
- tough with somebody/something
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strong enough to deal successfully with difficult conditions or situations 堅強的；健壯的；能吃苦耐勞的；堅韌不拔的 a tough breed of cattle 耐劣等飼養條件的牛種 He's not tough enough for a career in sales. 他幹推銷這一行缺少足夠的韌勁。 She’s a tough cookie/customer (= somebody who knows what they want and is not easily influenced by other people). 她是個有主見的人。 Celine is a fighter, a tough nut. 席琳是一個鬥士，一個堅強的人。 How mentally tough are you? 你的精神有多堅強？
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- appear
- be
- feel
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
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(of a person 人 physically strong and likely to be violent 彪悍的；粗暴的；粗野的 You think you're so tough, don't you? 你以爲自己夠厲害的，是不是？ He plays the tough guy in the movie. 他在電影中扮演硬漢。 Then this guy started acting tough. 然後這個人的行爲開始強硬了。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- appear
- be
- feel
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- (of a place or area)
with a lot of crime or violence (指地方或者地區)有很多犯罪或者暴力 She grew up in a tough neighbourhood. 她在一個艱苦的社區長大。
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difficult to cut or bite on 難切開的；嚼不爛的；老的 The meat was a bit tough. 肉有點硬。 Overcooking the burger will make it tough and dry. 漢堡煮得太久會變得又硬又幹。
not easily cut, broken, torn, etc. 堅固的；不易切開（或打破、撕破等）的 - tough (on somebody) (informal)
unlucky for somebody in a way that seems unfair 不幸的；倒黴的
difficult困難
strict嚴厲
strong強壯
violent暴力
meat肉
not easily damaged不易損壞
not lucky
Word OriginOld English tōh, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch taai and German zäh.
Idioms
hang tough
- (North American English, informal)
to be determined and refuse to change your attitude or ideas 立場堅定；態度堅決
a hard/tough nut
- (informal)
a person who is difficult to deal with or to influence 難對付的人；難說服的人
a hard/tough nut (to crack)
a difficult problem or situation to deal with 棘手的問題；不好對付的情形
a hard/tough act to follow
a person or event that is so good or successful at something that it will be difficult for anyone/anything else coming after them to be as good or successful 令人望塵莫及的人 She has been an excellent principal and will be a hard act to follow. 她是一位優秀的校長，令人無法與之媲美。 Their contribution will prove a tough act to follow. 他們的貢獻令人難以企及。
talk tough (on something)
- (informal, especially North American English)
to tell people very strongly what you want 強硬地說；強烈地要求
(as) tough as old boots | (as) tough as nails (informal)
very strong and able to deal successfully with difficult conditions or situations 很強壯；堅韌不拔；雷打不動 She’s almost 90 but she’s still as tough as old boots. 她快90歲了，但仍然像舊靴子一樣堅韌。
More Like This Similes in idiomsSimiles in idioms- (as) bald as a coot
- (as) blind as a bat
- (as) bright as a button
- (as) bold as brass
- as busy as a bee
- as clean as a whistle
- (as) dead as a/the dodo
- (as) deaf as a post
- (as) dull as ditchwater
- (as) fit as a fiddle
- as flat as a pancake
- (as) good as gold
- (as) mad as a hatter/a March hare
- (as) miserable/ugly as sin
- as old as the hills
- (as) pleased/proud as Punch
- as pretty as a picture
- (as) regular as clockwork
- (as) quick as a flash
- (as) safe as houses
- (as) sound as a bell
- (as) steady as a rock
- (as) thick as two short planks
- (as) tough as old boots
tough luck (informal)
used to show sympathy for somebody that something bad that has happened to （表示同情）真不幸，真不走運 - (ironic)
used to show that you do not feel sorry for somebody who has a problem （表示並不同情）該你倒黴
when the going gets tough (the tough get going)
- (saying)
when conditions or progress become difficult (strong and determined people work even harder to succeed) 當條件變得艱苦時，當進展變得困難時（隐含有志者更勇往直前之意）