as in desolate
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
it was hard to eke out even a bare existence on the hardscrabble lands
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hardscrabble
One afternoon, Ayyub and I walked through Soura, a hardscrabble neighborhood in Srinagar’s old city which has been the site of several confrontations with security forces.
—
Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
One of my tasks was to dig into her past — from her hardscrabble childhood to her recent business dealings.
—Nick Tabor, Curbed, 11 Apr. 2025
And she’s been working to get Vans back to its own hardscrabble roots.
—Evan Clark, WWD, 6 Mar. 2025
Waukegan is counting on the project to boost its downtown economy, but this hardscrabble city will have to wait at least a couple more years for a grand opening.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
Andrew Marantz, New Yorker, 28 Apr. 2025
One of my tasks was to dig into her past — from her hardscrabble childhood to her recent business dealings.
—Nick Tabor, Curbed, 11 Apr. 2025
And she’s been working to get Vans back to its own hardscrabble roots.
—Evan Clark, WWD, 6 Mar. 2025
Waukegan is counting on the project to boost its downtown economy, but this hardscrabble city will have to wait at least a couple more years for a grand opening.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hardscrabble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hardscrabble
Adjective
-
When The Last of Us premiered back in 2023, there was massive chatter surrounding Pascal and his penchant for rescuing desolate children in TV shows.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
People.com,
25 May 2025
-
See a camera operator following Snook to a desolate corner?—
CT Jones,
Rolling Stone,
21 May 2025
Adjective
-
During campaign events, Lee, who grew up in an impoverished farming household and toiled in factories as a child, spoke from behind bullet-proof glass to crowds, which were surveyed by rooftop police snipers.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
4 June 2025
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Curtis’ extraordinary talent is first recognized in kindergarten, when a charitable foundation donates instruments to his impoverished public school.—
Joan Gaylord,
Christian Science Monitor,
29 May 2025
Adjective
-
For many of the faithful, the pilgrimage begins at a sacred mud volcano rising from the barren landscape near the Makran Coastal Highway.—
Zia ur-Rehman Asim Hafeez,
New York Times,
30 May 2025
-
The festival was deliberately planned for the barren weeks in June after college students left and before the summer concert and festival season kicked in.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
25 May 2025
Adjective
-
At the same time, others who attended this year’s California Democratic Party Convention dismissed any notion that the future of the Democratic Party is bleak.—
Linh Tat,
Oc Register,
31 May 2025
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The early options on the GOP side are bleak: Neither Donalds nor Casey DeSantis, the governor’s wife who’s said to be interested in succeeding him, is the moderate Florida so desperately needs now.—
Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
30 May 2025
Adjective
-
Job Corps, established in 1964, provides education and vocational training to disadvantaged youth but has been criticized by the Labor Department for poor outcomes and safety issues.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 June 2025
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The risk extends even to children due to increasing rates of childhood obesity and poor dietary habits.20 As a result, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that healthy adults have their lipids checked every four to six years.—
MD Published,
Verywell Health,
5 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hardscrabble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hardscrabble. Accessed 14 Jun. 2025.
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