as in perplexed
faced with difficulty or uncertainty about what to say, think, or do
she was hard put to explain her department's excessive expenditures
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Recent Examples of hard put
Arendt, who was accused of smuggling anti-Semitic literature out of the library to expose Hitler’s intentions to the West, defends her innocence with such intellectual rigor, conviction, and charm that the audience, like the interrogator, is hard put to decipher the truth.
—
airmail.news, 28 Dec. 2024
Arendt, who was accused of smuggling anti-Semitic literature out of the library to expose Hitler’s intentions to the West, defends her innocence with such intellectual rigor, conviction, and charm that the audience, like the interrogator, is hard put to decipher the truth.
—airmail.news, 28 Dec. 2024
Many Americans, while understanding that Washington was essential to the success of the revolution in his role as commanding general, would be hard put to explain why he is so highly ranked as president.
—Sara Georgini, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Aug. 2024
From Brazil to Germany, companies are hard put to crew up, such is the demand by series and movies.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 10 May 2023
But with an evenly split Senate, and Democrats hard put to get to the 60-vote threshold needed to prevent Republicans from blocking their bills, Ms. Sinema – together with Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia – has come under particular fire for her refusal to scrap the filibuster.
—Stephanie Hanes, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 Aug. 2021
This item, which has more in common with a tabletop decoration than a functioning reticule, would be hard put to accommodate a hairbrush; a cellphone would dwarf it.
—Lynn Yaeger, Town & Country, 22 Jan. 2023
Japan itself, with a stagnant economy and the highest debt-to-GDP ratio in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, will be hard put to sustain the necessary military buildup.
—Walter Russell Mead, WSJ, 28 Nov. 2022
But this is a tale of two women, and you’d be hard put to nominate one of them as the obvious heroine, or to say who is sweating under the greater stress.
—The New Yorker, 25 Feb. 2022
airmail.news, 28 Dec. 2024
Arendt, who was accused of smuggling anti-Semitic literature out of the library to expose Hitler’s intentions to the West, defends her innocence with such intellectual rigor, conviction, and charm that the audience, like the interrogator, is hard put to decipher the truth.
—airmail.news, 28 Dec. 2024
Many Americans, while understanding that Washington was essential to the success of the revolution in his role as commanding general, would be hard put to explain why he is so highly ranked as president.
—Sara Georgini, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Aug. 2024
From Brazil to Germany, companies are hard put to crew up, such is the demand by series and movies.
—John Hopewell, Variety, 10 May 2023
But with an evenly split Senate, and Democrats hard put to get to the 60-vote threshold needed to prevent Republicans from blocking their bills, Ms. Sinema – together with Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia – has come under particular fire for her refusal to scrap the filibuster.
—Stephanie Hanes, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 Aug. 2021
This item, which has more in common with a tabletop decoration than a functioning reticule, would be hard put to accommodate a hairbrush; a cellphone would dwarf it.
—Lynn Yaeger, Town & Country, 22 Jan. 2023
Japan itself, with a stagnant economy and the highest debt-to-GDP ratio in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, will be hard put to sustain the necessary military buildup.
—Walter Russell Mead, WSJ, 28 Nov. 2022
But this is a tale of two women, and you’d be hard put to nominate one of them as the obvious heroine, or to say who is sweating under the greater stress.
—The New Yorker, 25 Feb. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hard put
Adjective
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Unlike last week — or most others this season, come to think of it — no one totally nails it, nor really expects to (… except for Massimo, who’s clearly perplexed when his mussel-and-clam pie ends up in the safe middle).—
Caroline Framke,
Vulture,
25 Apr. 2025
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The aim is to answer the question that has long perplexed scientists: was Mars once habitable?—
Jonathan O’Callaghan,
JSTOR Daily,
10 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The Tensor series uses a double layer of reflective film insulation, with a baffled air chamber design, which helps keep it quiet.—
Scott Gilbertson,
Wired News,
11 May 2025
-
Kind, baffled but game, gets roped into the dada humor.—
Michael Schulman,
New Yorker,
11 May 2025
Adjective
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Snorting, grunting, and other strange noses The parents of Bauer’s patients often demonstrate the weird noises their kids make—all in the name of helping their embarrassed children.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
2 May 2025
-
Swanson said the one-day spring training shoot was a fun experience, but the easily embarrassed ballplayer initially struggled to unleash his inner Justin Timberlake.—
Robert Channick,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The actor—who is also currently filming season three of Euphoria—took the time to walk the wide-eyed and probably quite bewildered pup around the carpeted front of the hotel, and looked chic doing it.—
Anna Cafolla,
Vogue,
7 May 2025
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Heyman then handed the chair to a bewildered Roman Reigns, who used it to strike downed CM Punk.—
Tom Rogers,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hard put.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hard%20put. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
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