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rough passage

British  

noun

  1. a stormy sea journey

  2. a difficult or testing time

"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

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.

The unexpected, such as the rough passage through the Cape of Good Hope, the rocky promontory approaching Cape Town, South Africa.

From Washington Times

If you’re having a very rough passage and there’s a lot of people getting seasick, or if there’s an intestinal virus, you can be extremely busy and pretty much work around the clock and catch little naps here and there.

From Slate

The sounds open onto Cook Strait, the notoriously rough passage between the South and North Islands.

From Washington Post

Scouted by Norman Parkinson, the British fashion photographer, and then recruited by Eileen Ford, a founder of Ford Models, Ms. von Schlebrugge became a successful, if ambivalent, model, arriving in New York City after a rough passage on the Queen Mary.

From New York Times

The rough passage to Florida took three days.

From Washington Post