demanding

1 of 2

adjective

de·​mand·​ing di-ˈman-diŋ 

-ˈmän-, 

dē-

: requiring much time, effort, or attention : exacting

a demanding job

demanding customers

demandingly

di-ˈman-diŋ-lē 

-ˈmän-, 

dē-

adverb

demandingness noun

demanding

2 of 2

present participle of demand entry 2

Synonyms of demanding

Adjective

• challenging
• difficult

Examples of demanding in a Sentence

Adjective

She had a demanding schedule with little free time.

Factory work can be physically demanding.

I have heard it is one of the most demanding courses at the university.

Their boss was really demanding, often expecting them to work long into the night.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

That evaluation should become more demanding as the season develops. — C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 1 Nov. 2026

Balancing weight and buoyancy Hydrostatic balance presents a particularly demanding engineering problem for submarine designers. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 31 Oct. 2026

Joseph Zada is beyond impressive in a highly demanding role that pushes him to the limit physically and emotionally, perfectly capturing the essence of Haymitch with all the sympathy, charm and bitterness Woody Harrelson brought to the role. — Zack Sharf, Variety, 29 Oct. 2026

Yes, Starship presented a complicated, oversized, and technically demanding solution. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 29 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

from present participle of demand entry 2

First Known Use

Adjective

1926, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for demanding

• commanding
• disbanding
• expanding
• freestanding
• misbranding
• outstanding
• remanding
• upstanding
• withstanding
• banding
• branding
• handing

Kids Definition

demanding

adjective

de·​mand·​ing

di-ˈman-diŋ

: making many or difficult demands : exacting

a demanding job

demandingly adverb