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| Date: | 1800-1900 |
| Origin: | gruel 'to punish' (1800-1900), from gruel 'food'; because people were given gruel as a punishment |
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gru‧el‧ling British English ; grueling American English
The cast took a break from their gruelling schedule.a grueling journeyWORD FOCUS: difficult WORD FOCUS: difficult
difficult to do: hard, tough, challenging, daunting
difficult and needing a lot of physical effort: tough, strenuous, back-breaking, gruelling, arduous, punishing
difficult to deal with or talk about: tricky, awkward, delicate, sensitive, touchy
words for describing a difficult person: awkward, trying
words for describing difficult conditions: adverse, hostile
➔ See also difficult
WORD FOCUS: difficult difficult to do: hard, tough, challenging, daunting
difficult and needing a lot of physical effort: tough, strenuous, back-breaking, gruelling, arduous, punishing
difficult to deal with or talk about: tricky, awkward, delicate, sensitive, touchy
words for describing a difficult person: awkward, trying
words for describing difficult conditions: adverse, hostile
➔ See also difficult
