tough break

Save This Word!

See synonyms for tough break on Thesaurus.com

Also, tough luck. A trying or troublesome circumstance, bad luck, as in He got a tough break when he was denied a raise, or Tough luck for the team last night. This idiom uses tough in the sense of “difficult,” a usage dating from the early 1600s. The variant is also used as a sarcastic interjection, as in So you didn't make straight A's—tough luck! A slangy variant of this interjection is tough beans, and a ruder version is tough shit. [Colloquial; c. 1900]

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "IS" VS. "ARE"

"Is" it time for a new quiz? "Are" you ready? Then prove your excellent skills on using "is" vs. "are."

Question 1 of 7

IS and ARE are both forms of which verb?

have

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Words nearby tough break

touchwood, touchy, touchy-feely, Touggourt, tough, tough break, toughen, toughie, toughish, tough it out, tough love

How to use tough break in a sentence

This is the Mexico that U.S. college students would be wise to steer clear of on spring break.
Why Mexicans Are Enraged by Obama’s Big Tuesday Meeting|Ruben Navarrette Jr.|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I was already over forty, had hardly a nickel in my pocket and this was the biggest break in my life.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile|Robert Ward|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
His flesh is sagging a bit, but he is still trim and looks lean, sinewy and tough.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile|Robert Ward|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“You ask me my motivation,” Marvin says, moving back into his tough guy persona again.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile|Robert Ward|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST

This sultry ballad about break-ups and make-ups in the City of Angels is haunting stuff.
The 14 Best Songs of 2014: Bobby Shmurda, Future Islands, Drake, and More|Marlow Stern|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Were you ever arrested, having in your custody another man's cash, and would rather go to gaol, than break it?
The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner (1801)|Daniel Defoe
If old Piegan Smith hadn't been sampling the contents of that keg so industriously he would never have made a break.
Raw Gold|Bertrand W. Sinclair
General Houston had attacked them with three hundred of our people, but had not been able to break their ranks.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
For good or ill, the torrent of rebellion was suffered to break loose, and it soon engulfed a continent.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
Victor was the younger son and brother—a tete montee, with a temper which invited violence and a will which no ax could break.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin

tough break

Words nearby tough break

Words related to tough break

How to use tough break in a sentence