Difficulty
Difficulty noun - Something that is a cause for suffering or special effort especially in the attainment of a goal.
Usage example: the many difficulties that he encountered on the road from poor orphan to head of a major corporation
Handicap is a synonym for difficulty in problem topic. In some cases you can use "Handicap" instead a noun "Difficulty", when it comes to topics like obstacle.
Nearby Word: difficult
Handicap
Handicap noun - Something that makes movement or progress difficult.
Usage example: her uncomfortable shoes became a handicap on the walking tour of the city, as she often had to sit and rest her sore feet
Difficulty is a synonym for handicap in disadvantage topic. Sometimes you can use "Difficulty" instead a noun "Handicap", if it concerns topics such as obstacle.
Nearby Words: handicapped, handicapping
Mutual synonyms
Related pairs
How words are described
Both words in one sentence
- Zoro wins with lots of difficulty due to the handicap (without the handicap, he would probably win easily).
Source: Deus Exit Machina -
The latter achieves it's difficulty spike due to your CPU partner suddenly becoming near-useless, leaving you in a virtual handicap match against the CPU team.
Source: Schizophrenic Difficulty - Why anyone would fight with an intentional handicap like that is his business (he even does a nearly straight-up kick with no difficulty).
Source: Impossibly Cool Clothes
Cite this Source
Handicap and Difficulty. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 15, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/difficulty/handicap
Difficulty & Handicap. N.p., 2016. Web. 15 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/difficulty/handicap>.
Handicap or Difficulty. 2016. Accessed August 15, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/difficulty/handicap.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "difficulty" and "handicap" have occurred on timeline