toughie

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.

It’s a toughie because you feel like there’s an answer you’re supposed to give and then there’s an answer you wanna give.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 4, 2025

Quiz five out of five and this one is a toughie.

From BBC • Dec. 25, 2024

In contrast, Mapplethorpe, who emerged in the anything-goes 1970s, explored his various identities “as a woman, as a gangster, as a devilish imp, as a toughie, as nothing special.”

From New York Times • Dec. 21, 2018

When asked about Judy Garland, he’d say, “I thought she was going to be a toughie, but she wasn’t.”

From The New Yorker • Jul. 11, 2018

“I knew you were an old toughie the minute I saw you.”

From "Bud, Not Buddy" by Christopher Paul Curtis