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tough-minded

adjective

Definition of tough-mindednext
as in unsentimental

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of tough-minded Her tough-minded sister, Ena (Lisa Hagmeister), sees things with greater clarity. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2026 Murphy, a gifted mechanic and a veteran of the Great War, immediately stands out to Clancy as a tough-minded, industrious guy. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 28 Jan. 2026 The number of ambiguous, tough-minded docs may be dwindling, but the tools to repair a broken world are growing. — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 7 Dec. 2025 His dad was a very, very tough-minded person. — Mark Gray, PEOPLE, 8 Nov. 2025 See All Example Sentences for tough-minded
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tough-minded
  1. unsentimental
  2. bottom-line
  3. unromantic
  4. levelheaded
  5. hard-edged
  6. rational
  7. sensible
  8. logical
Adjective
  • The unsentimental roar is, of course, a translation of Chekhov’s saws, and a good one at that.
    — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The affect of these books—brisk, unsentimental, exacting—serves their diagnosis.
    — Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of unsentimental
Adjective
  • Disputing the very right of California Attorney General Rob Bonta, New York AG Letitia James and others to raise an antitrust stink, the Todd Blanche-run DOJ made its bottom-line POV a top line in paperwork filed Tuesday in federal court.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 15 Sep. 2026
  • The company went public in July with top- and bottom-line increases, plenty of room to grow overseas and at home and a strong sustainability message.
    — Evan Clark, Footwear News, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of bottom-line
Adjective
  • At the press conference, a journalist noted that his filmography is notable for its unromantic view of animal life.
    — Nate Jones, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2026
  • For 30 minutes, the hunter watched the whitetails play a cat-and-mouse game as the buck tried to stay close to the unromantic does.
    — Jeff Murray, Outdoor Life, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of unromantic
Adjective
  • To hear levelheaded commentators discuss it, this was all simply entertainment — two of the genre’s greats duking it out.
    — Jeff Ihaza, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2026
  • The group consists of levelheaded leader Blossom, sweet-natured Bubbles, and spunky Buttercup.
    — Oliver Gettell, Entertainment Weekly, 26 July 2026
Definition of levelheaded
Adjective
  • The Good, the Bad and the Painterly As Bouancheau fashioned a Puss that was more lyrical, like a character that stepped out of a fairy tale book and less hard-edged, all the other characters followed suit.
    — Karen Idelson, Variety, 23 Feb. 2023
Definition of hard-edged
Adjective
  • Founded by two British academics almost two decades ago, Effective Altruism is a philosophical movement whose core idea is that people should try to use rational processes to do the most good for the most people in the world.
    — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 23 Sep. 2026
  • This is not to impugn the nobility of counting, of the close and careful observation of nature, of the rational, ordered efforts to understand it.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of rational
Adjective
  • Whatever a company decides today may not remain sensible six months from now.
    — Vinit Sahni, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Oakley has directed a new interpretation of the book, starring Daisy Edgar-Jones as the sensible Elinor Dashwood and Esmé Creed-Miles as her more emotive sister, Marianne.
    — Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of sensible
Adjective
  • That work, first demonstrated at 12 logical qubits, extends directly into today’s result, as per the release.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 25 Sep. 2026
  • As of July 2026, the current record is just under 100 logical qubits.
    — Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of logical

Browse Nearby Words

toughly
tough-minded
toughness
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Cite this Entry

“Tough-minded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tough-minded. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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