toughest

ADJECTIVE

sturdy, strong

Synonyms

STRONGEST

hard healthy resilient solid stiff tenacious tight vigorous

STRONG

firm fit hardy stalwart stout

WEAK

brawny cohesive conditioned dense durable fibrous flinty hard as nails hard-bitten hardened indigestible inflexible leathery lusty mighty molded resistant rigid robust rugged seasoned sinewy steeled strapping tough as nails unbreakable unyielding withstanding

Antonyms

STRONGEST

easy flexible loose pliable pliant slack soft weak yielding

WEAK

controllable delicate facile fragile gentle kind nice tender unstable vulnerable wobbly

ADJECTIVE

obstinate, rough

Synonyms

STRONGEST

desperate fierce hard hard-nosed harsh narrow resolute severe stern stiff strict terrible

STRONG

adamant firm refractory savage

WEAK

arbitrary callous confirmed cruel drastic exacting ferocious fixed hard-bitten hard-boiled hard-line hard-shelled headstrong immutable inflexible intractable merciless obdurate pugnacious ruffianly ruthless stubborn taut unalterable unbending uncompromising uncontrollable unforgiving unmanageable unyielding vicious violent

Antonyms

STRONGEST

amenable calm easy easy-going facile flexible gentle kind lenient mild nice peaceful pliable pliant soft tolerant uncertain yielding

STRONG

supple

WEAK

controllable delicate fragile tender unstable vulnerable weak wobbly

ADJECTIVE

difficult, laborious

Synonyms

STRONGEST

arduous demanding hard onerous severe stiff strenuous troublesome

STRONG

handful heavy mean uphill

WEAK

backbreaking baffling burdensome effortful exacting exhausting exigent grievous hairy intractable intricate irksome knotty labored no piece of cake oppressive perplexing puzzling resisting taxing thorny toilsome trying unyielding weighty wicked

Antonyms

STRONGEST

calm easy facile flexible mild nice pliable pliant soft trivial

WEAK

controllable delicate fragile gentle kind tender unstable vulnerable weak wobbly

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The restaurant industry is facing one of its toughest operating environments in years.

From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026

“Getting used to it as a player, kind of understanding the flow of the game, that’s probably the toughest part for me,” Atkins said.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 7, 2026

A persistent foot injury stopped the 25-year-old training and competing consistently at the start of this season, and he admitted in April that the previous six months had been the toughest of his career.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026

Already one of the toughest cybersecurity gaps to plug, insider attacks carried out by autonomous AI agents with privileged access to digital systems are proving even harder to prevent, security experts say.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 2, 2026

“You don’t know what that’s about,” Latoya, one of the toughest girls, teased.

From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter