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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Recent Examples of hardscrabble
Once ekeing out a hardscrabble existence on the margins of the Short Creek FLDS offshoot community, Samuel Bateman eventually rushed to fill its center.
—
Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Apr. 2026
With a hardscrabble happy ending.
—Alex Morris, Rolling Stone, 19 Mar. 2026
Vérité-realistic portrait of hardscrabble immigrant life this film is not.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 19 Mar. 2026
Doug Marker of Encinitas was a professional skateboarder between 1977 and 1980, during the sport’s hardscrabble days.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Apr. 2026
With a hardscrabble happy ending.
—Alex Morris, Rolling Stone, 19 Mar. 2026
Vérité-realistic portrait of hardscrabble immigrant life this film is not.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 19 Mar. 2026
Doug Marker of Encinitas was a professional skateboarder between 1977 and 1980, during the sport’s hardscrabble days.
—Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hardscrabble
Adjective
-
Buddy was hiding in the bushes on the side of a desolate highway when he was found by a good Samaritan and brought to a rescue.—
Maryanne Dell,
Oc Register,
30 May 2026
-
The bleak, desolate masterpiece from 1989’s Pretty Hate Machine was used to great effect in 1995’s Natural Born Killers, the first film soundtrack produced by Reznor.—
Al Shipley,
SPIN,
29 May 2026
Adjective
-
In a barren free-agent class, though, that’s much easier said than done.—
Shayna Goldman,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
-
Called me barren and used up and all that.—
Jamil Jan Kochai,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
Adjective
-
Rural Cuba was profoundly impoverished and underdeveloped before and during the Batista era, and land ownership was scant among the working poor.—
Max Saltman,
CNN Money,
4 June 2026
-
So much for bringing the experience of art to culturally impoverished Butte.—
Jonathan Franzen,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
Adjective
-
This year, though, is things are looking bleak.—
Alan Gionet,
CBS News,
4 June 2026
-
Charli and preeminent pop divas Olivia Rodrigo and Ariana Grande are releasing some of the bleakest music of their careers just in time for summer, the traditional season for party anthems and celebratory bangers.—
Scottie Andrew,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
Adjective
-
Common travel regrets stem from preventable issues like poor planning, budget problems, and choosing the wrong companions.—
Kathleen Wong,
USA Today,
3 June 2026
-
O’Farrell’s inclination for narratives propelled by brutal coincidence and fatally poor timing tenders a Hardy-esque vision of the world, one that emphasizes the rigid, often cruel limits of an individual’s jurisdiction over the course of their life.—
Rachel Vorona Cote,
Vulture,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hardscrabble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hardscrabble. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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