Arcane
Arcane adjective - Having an often intentionally veiled or uncertain meaning.
Usage example: the rebate form uses arcane language, the only purpose of which seems to be to disqualify buyers from actually getting a rebate
Difficult
Difficult adjective - Requiring considerable physical or mental effort.
Arcane and difficult are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Arcane" instead an adjective "Difficult".
Nearby Word: difficulty
Mutual synonyms
Both words in one sentence
- Guide Dang It: It would be difficult-shading-into-impossible to win without reading spoilers on some of Nethack's more arcane mechanics.
Source: Video Game / NetHack -
However, it also makes the Dreadnought difficult to maintain and repair simply due to its arcane design.
Source: Achievements in Ignorance -
As an example, most vampire fiction stops with its incredibly Bad Ass Elder vampires being a few hundred years old, anything much older being too arcane or too difficult to write.
Source: The Singularity
Cite this Source
Difficult and Arcane. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/arcane/difficult
Arcane & Difficult. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/arcane/difficult>.
Difficult or Arcane. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/arcane/difficult.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "arcane" and "difficult" have occurred on timeline