hardscrabble
adjective
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Definition of hardscrabble
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Synonyms & Antonyms for hardscrabble
Synonyms
barren, bony (also boney), dead, desolate, impoverished, infertile, poor, stark, unfertile, unproductive, waste
Antonyms
fertile, fruitful, lush, luxuriant, productive, rich
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Examples of hardscrabble in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
O’Rourke was born in prestige, lived a charmed life, raised in an upper-class lifestyle by people accustomed to power -- a sharp contrast to that of a mostly Mexican-American, hardscrabble city where workers still barely make ends meet... — James Freeman, WSJ, "Too Soon for Democrats To Dump Elizabeth Warren?," 7 Dec. 2018 In 1981, having escaped a hardscrabble life in West Texas, Bobby Mealer, the author’s father, dragged his wife and young children back to the Permian Basin in hope of cashing in on the region’s latest oil boom. — Andrew R. Graybill, WSJ, "What to Give: History Books," 15 Nov. 2018 Kennedy, a lawyer and family doctor, had a hardscrabble upbringing as one of seven children raised by a single mother. — Washington Post, "Mitt Romney up against state lawmaker in Senate primary," 26 June 2018 The new Tangled Shore patrol zone, where the campaign takes place, has a hardscrabble pirate vibe to it that's very cool. — Aaron Zimmerman, Ars Technica, "Destiny 2: Forsaken review: Hallelujah, Destiny’s back," 19 Sep. 2018 Based on the 1955 animated classic, this modern retelling will once again chronicle the misadventures of Lady, a snooty Cocker Spaniel who falls in love with Tramp, a hardscrabble stray mutt from the other side of the tracks. — Dan Barna, Teen Vogue, "Tessa Thompson Will Reportedly Voice Lady in Disney's "Lady and the Tramp" Remake," 14 Aug. 2018 While the tight fit and multicolored horizontal stripes have proved appealing, the garments are actually meant to be kind of raggedy, capturing the hardscrabble life in 1870s Maine. — Abby Ellin, New York Times, "A Good Yarn About Those ‘Carousel’ Costumes," 23 May 2018 Walker fits that bill, and brings an inquisitive personality and a hardscrabble backstory that should fit in well with his new team. — Steve Warns, San Antonio Express-News, "Writers’ roundtable: Who won the NBA Draft, what’s next with Kawhi Leonard," 23 June 2018 This hardscrabble region, having earlier experienced the departures of its oil and gas refineries, its railroad yards, its steel and iron mills, must once again deal with loss. — Frank Fitzpatrick, Philly.com, "Ashes of an industry: A Pennsylvania tradition is dying, one baseball bat at a time," 14 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hardscrabble.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for hardscrabble
hardscrabble
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of hardscrabble
: having poor soil
: having harsh and difficult conditions because of poverty
See the full definition for hardscrabble in the English Language Learners Dictionary
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