Dictionary Entry

tough

tough is a 5-letter English word with 17 senses as noun and adjective in the JumbleFix dictionary. One common meaning is: Having the quality of flexibility without brittleness; yielding to force without breaking; capable of resisting great strain; as, the ligaments of animals are remarkably tough. Face value is 9 in Scrabble and 10 in Words With Friends. Use the entries below when you need a playable sense, a nearby word, or another arrangement of the same letters.

5 letters · Scrabble 9 · Words With Friends 10 · 17 senses

Definitions

1superlative
Having the quality of flexibility without brittleness; yielding to force without breaking; capable of resisting great strain; as, the ligaments of animals are remarkably tough.
2superlative
Not easily broken; able to endure hardship; firm; strong; as, tough sinews.
3superlative
Not easily separated; viscous; clammy; tenacious; as, tough phlegm.
4superlative
Stiff; rigid; not flexible; stubborn; as, a tough bow.
5superlative
Severe; violent; as, a tough storm.
6noun
a cruel and brutal fellow
Synonyms
bully hooligan roughneck rowdy ruffian yob yobbo
7noun
an aggressive and violent young criminal
Synonyms
goon hood hoodlum punk thug toughie
8noun
someone who learned to fight in the streets rather than being formally trained in the sport of boxing
9adjective
feeling physical discomfort or pain (`tough' is occasionally used colloquially for `bad')
"my throat feels bad"
"she felt bad all over"
Synonyms
bad
10adjective
substantially made or constructed
"sturdy steel shelves"
"sturdy canvas"
Synonyms
sturdy
11adjective
making great mental demands; hard to comprehend or solve or believe
"a baffling problem"
"I faced the knotty problem of what to have for breakfast"
Synonyms
baffling elusive knotty problematic problematical
12adjective
very difficult; severely testing stamina or resolution
"a rugged competitive examination"
"the rugged conditions of frontier life"
Synonyms
rugged
13adjective
unfortunate or hard to bear
"had hard luck"
"a tough break"
Synonyms
hard
14adjective
resistant to cutting or chewing
15adjective
physically toughened
"the tough bottoms of his feet"
Synonyms
toughened
16adjective
not given to gentleness or sentimentality
"a tough character"
17adjective
violent and lawless
"the more ruffianly element"
"tough street gangs"
Synonyms
ruffianly

Synonyms

bully hooligan roughneck rowdy ruffian yob yobbo goon hood hoodlum punk thug toughie bad sturdy baffling elusive knotty problematic problematical rugged hard toughened ruffianly

Anagrams

Other playable words that use exactly the letters in tough:

ought

Common word forms

toughs toughen tougher toughly toughest toughness

Words from these letters

If you are holding these tiles, the unscrambler for TOUGH lists every valid word you can make from the same letters, including shorter plays.