challenging
Americanadjective
-
offering a challenge; testing one's ability, endurance, etc.
a challenging course;
a challenging game.
-
stimulating, interesting, and thought-provoking.
a challenging suggestion.
-
provocative; intriguing.
a challenging smile.
adjective
Other Word Forms
- challengingly adverb
- nonchallenging adjective
- unchallenging adjective
Etymology
Origin of challenging
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, as a gerund; 1835–45 for sense of "testing one's ability"; challenge ( def. ), -ing 2 ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Imagine how challenging it is to write 100,000 more words on the subject.
The group stressed it was not challenging forecast accuracy - but how the information is visually presented, particularly by third-party apps that may show overnight rain as an all-day rain symbol, for example.
From BBC
"It's extremely challenging to measure even today with satellites and we simply don't have very many observations going back so far in time," she told AFP.
From Barron's
The cautious outlook highlights the challenging markets that private-equity firms are operating in.
Dad used to try to get her to spend more time on academic research so she could publish more articles and get a promotion and teach more challenging classes.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
