hardscrabble
adjective
hard·scrab·ble
ˈhärd-ˌskra-bəl 
1
a
: being or relating to a place of barren or barely arable soil
a hardscrabble farm
hardscrabble prairies
b
: getting a meager living from poor soil
a hardscrabble farmer
2
: marked by poverty
a hardscrabble mill town
a hardscrabble childhood
Examples of hardscrabble in a Sentence
He lived a hardscrabble life.
it was hard to eke out even a bare existence on the hardscrabble lands
Recent Examples on the Web
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
The scheme led to one of the companies, then-known as Hometown International, having a market capitalization of more than $100 million despite owning only one small, money-losing delicatessen in the hardscrabble south Jersey town of Paulsboro.
—Dan Mangan, CNBC, 24 Nov. 2025
Like Macy, Silas is smart and ambitious, from a hardscrabble family.
—Alex Kotlowitz, The Atlantic, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
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Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 11 Dec. 2025
The hardscrabble landscape suits its subjects.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Dec. 2025
The scheme led to one of the companies, then-known as Hometown International, having a market capitalization of more than $100 million despite owning only one small, money-losing delicatessen in the hardscrabble south Jersey town of Paulsboro.
—Dan Mangan, CNBC, 24 Nov. 2025
Like Macy, Silas is smart and ambitious, from a hardscrabble family.
—Alex Kotlowitz, The Atlantic, 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
Cite this Entry
“Hardscrabble.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hardscrabble. Accessed 18 Dec. 2025.
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