hardscrabble

[ hahrd-skrab-uhl ]

/ ˈhɑrdˌskræb əl /

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adjective

providing or yielding meagerly in return for much effort; demanding or unrewarding: the hardscrabble existence of mountainside farmers.

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Origin of hardscrabble

An Americanism dating back to 1795–1805; hard + scrabble

Words nearby hardscrabble

hard rubber, hards, hard sauce, hardscape, hard science, hardscrabble, hard sell, hard-set, hard-shell, hard-shell clam, hard-shell crab

How to use hardscrabble in a sentence

The limited series’ depiction of the hardscrabble poor may prove more controversial.
The already great ‘Maid’ is even better with mother-daughter stars Andie MacDowell and Margaret Qualley|Inkoo Kang|September 30, 2021|Washington Post
I didn’t have a hardscrabble upbringing in the sense of deep poverty.
Roger Ferguson, CEO of TIAA, on Why You Shouldn’t Watch the Wild Stock Market All Day|Eben Shapiro|October 11, 2020|Time
Their harrowing escape to Erbil has ended in a precarious and hardscrabble existence.
Church Bells Fall Silent in Mosul as Iraq’s Christians Flee|Andrew Doran, Drew Bowling|June 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But this hardscrabble, prairie town, with its population of 5,000 people, cast its charm on Ballantine.
Death in the Heartland: What Happened to Steven Haataja?|Tim Teeman|March 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST

For many fans, her hardscrabble youth and rough-and-tumble style were viewed as endearing strengths.
ESPN’s ‘The Price of Gold’ Revisits the Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan Scandal|Amy Zimmerman|January 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At Big Valley, a co-ed pre-K-12 in hardscrabble Modesto, Calif., the trip to Washington D.C. has been an annual rite of passage.
The Sequester Ruined Our Eighth-Grade Trip to Washington, D.C.|David Freedlander|March 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In his hardscrabble campaign, there might not even have been a podium ready to welcome him.
What Newt Gingrich Can Do for Mitt Romney|Matt Latimer|August 9, 2012|DAILY BEAST
They moved into a large house which had been a tavern in the days when lumber had been cut around Hardscrabble.
Susan B. Anthony|Alma Lutz
Mr. Anthony had the name Hardscrabble changed to Center Falls, and was made postmaster.
The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony (Volume 1 of 2)|Ida Husted Harper
In March, 1839, the family moved to Hardscrabble, a small village two miles further down the Battenkill.
The Life and Work of Susan B. Anthony (Volume 1 of 2)|Ida Husted Harper
Its cost was to be seventy thousand dollars, which was an enormous sum in those hardscrabble days.
The History of the Telephone|Herbert N. Casson
Mr. and Mrs. Ronayne and the Doctor rode out soon after dinner, sir, in the direction of Hardscrabble.
Wau-nan-gee or the Massacre at Chicago|Major John Richardson

British Dictionary definitions for hardscrabble

hardscrabble

/ (ˈhɑːdˌskræbəl) /

noun US informal

(modifier) (of a place) difficult to make a living in; barren

great effort made in the face of difficulties

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012