hardscrabble

American  

[hahrd-skrab-uhl] / ˈhɑrdˌskræb əl /

adjective

1. providing or yielding meagerly in return for much effort; demanding or unrewarding.

   the hardscrabble existence of mountainside farmers.

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hardscrabble British  

/ ˈhɑːdˌskræbəl /

noun

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

2. great effort made in the face of difficulties

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Etymology

Origin of hardscrabble

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

Explanation

Something described as hardscrabble is difficult and challenging. Many people overcome a hardscrabble childhood and go on to achieve their dreams. During an economic depression, many people's lives become hardscrabble, as they fight to find work, or are unable to pay their bills without working two or three jobs. This sense of struggling just to metaphorically keep your head above water captures the meaning of hardscrabble. It's an early 19th-century coinage, first written in Lewis and Clark's journals, and referring to an imaginary place "where a livelihood may be obtained only under great hardship and difficulty."

Example Sentences

Through it all, however, West struggled with depression and a sense of self-loathing, and had trouble with intimacy, much of it a by-product of a hardscrabble childhood in West Virginia with a domineering father.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

The daughter of a traveling salesman, Flores grew up modestly in the cinder block hills of Catia, a hardscrabble district of western Caracas.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung praised the resolve of Brazil's leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva ahead of talks in Seoul on Monday, saying both rose to the top from hardscrabble beginnings.

From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026

President Masoud Pezeshkian promised dialogue and acknowledged "legitimate demands" in in a country where inflation soars near 50%, and currency depreciations play havoc with people's hardscrabble lives.

From BBC • Jan. 12, 2026

But this hardscrabble place has brought me so much more than that.

From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson