as in desolate
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
it was hard to eke out even a bare existence on the hardscrabble lands
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hardscrabble
The first pictures McCullin took were of hoodlums and down-and-outs, subjects that reflected his own hardscrabble background.
—
Andrew Pulver, Air Mail, 31 Jan. 2026
Since the mid 1800s, these hardscrabble enterprises have lain abandoned.
—Henry Wismayer, Travel + Leisure, 7 Jan. 2026
In adapting Denis Johnson’s 2011 novella, director Clint Bentley made the perfect choice in casting Edgerton as Robert Grainier, a solid working man in hardscrabble early 20th-century Idaho.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 11 Dec. 2025
The hardscrabble landscape suits its subjects.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
Andrew Pulver, Air Mail, 31 Jan. 2026
Since the mid 1800s, these hardscrabble enterprises have lain abandoned.
—Henry Wismayer, Travel + Leisure, 7 Jan. 2026
In adapting Denis Johnson’s 2011 novella, director Clint Bentley made the perfect choice in casting Edgerton as Robert Grainier, a solid working man in hardscrabble early 20th-century Idaho.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 11 Dec. 2025
The hardscrabble landscape suits its subjects.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hardscrabble
Adjective
-
Your character is a shape-shifting Ditto, and you’ve been dropped in a desolate landscape.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Feb. 2026
-
The gang pulls up to a desolate area, finding Albert's most recent car there.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
23 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Subjecting them to extreme conditions–from the 14,000-foot ascent of Pikes Peak to the barren deserts of the Rebelle Rally.—
Joel Feder,
The Drive,
27 Feb. 2026
-
These include wintergreen, golden star (Chrysogonum virginianum), and barren strawberry.—
Megan Hughes,
Better Homes & Gardens,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Salt was another luxury for the impoverished migrants.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Cinema-going culture has struggled to take hold in much of South Africa, particularly in townships and other impoverished communities, prompting the organizers to focus on building that culture in the next generation of South African moviegoers and filmmakers.—
Christopher Vourlias,
Variety,
2 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
For two teens unable to use their legs, the future was especially bleak.—
Nicole Acevedo,
NBC news,
7 Mar. 2026
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So what’s to be done when things look bleak?—
Ryan Ermey,
CNBC,
6 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Through its clear imagery, operators can navigate safely and assess fire scenes even with poor visibility.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Mar. 2026
-
An injection like this has a clear advantage over daily prevention pills in poorer countries, where patients – particularly young women – might struggle to access clinics or feel stigmatised for seeking treatment.—
Harriet Marsden,
TheWeek,
3 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hardscrabble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hardscrabble. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
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