Difficult
Difficult adjective - Requiring considerable physical or mental effort.
Usage example: difficult questions on the exam that required analytical thinking
Hard is a synonym for difficult in complicated topic. In some cases you can use "Hard" instead an adjective "Difficult", when it comes to topics like property, heavy, tough, bad. popular alternative
Nearby Word: difficulty
Hard
Hard adjective - Requiring considerable physical or mental effort.
Usage example: a hard exam to pass
Difficult is a synonym for hard in complicated topic. You can use "Difficult" instead an adjective "Hard", if it concerns topics such as complex, harsh, heavy, burdensome. popular alternative
Mutual synonyms
Both words in one sentence
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The term has been used (and abused)note specially when it's used as a hollow comparison meant to describe any kind of hard/difficult game.
Source: Discredited Meme -
It was never all that hard or difficult to get spring or river water (though the rule "Don't shit where you drink" took until the 19th century to really take hold) for most medieval people, what was hard was ensuring a large enough supply of edible grain.
Source: Medieval Morons -
Granted, the rules aren't exactly difficult or hard to figure out.
Source: Film / It Follows
Cite this Source
Hard and Difficult. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 13, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/difficult/hard
Difficult & Hard. N.p., 2016. Web. 13 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/difficult/hard>.
Hard or Difficult. 2016. Accessed August 13, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/difficult/hard.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "difficult" and "hard" have occurred on timeline