hard nut to crack
English · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
hard nut to crack
noun hard nuts to crack · harder nut to crack · hardest nut to crack
- A problem that is challenging to solve. He saw the dilemma. . . . It was a hard nut to crack. He could see no way out of it.
- A situation, person, group, etc. which is difficult to overcome or deal with. The coast lad found the veteran Mike McTigue a hard nut to crack and judging from the look on the Californian's face when the final bell sounded, he was mighty happy that the fight was over.
- A place, opportunity, etc. to which it is difficult to gain entry. The next day Archie, with Andrew Macpherson and Cluny Campbell, made their way through the woods until within sight of the castle. . . . "It would be a hard nut to crack, Sir Archie," his lieutenant said. "Unless by famine, the place could scarce be taken."
- An amount that is difficult to finance.
-
Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see hard, nut, crack.
Similar: difficult nut to crack, tough nut to crack
Translations
Every language
noun challenging problem to solve
| Español | hueso duro de roer |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 难以攻克的困难 |
| Deutsch | harte Nuss |
| Русский | кре́пкий оре́шек krépkij oréšek |
| עברית | אֱגוֹז קָשֶׁה לְפִצּוּחַ egóz qashé l'fitzúaẖ |
Talk about this word "hard nut to crack." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/hard%20nut%20to%20crack. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. hard nut to crack. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/hard%20nut%20to%20crack "hard nut to crack." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/hard%20nut%20to%20crack.Cite this
@misc{hard_nut_to_crack_2026,
title = {hard nut to crack},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/hard%20nut%20to%20crack},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
