What is the Latin word for difficult?

The usual Latin words for “difficult” are arduus, impediō, perdifficilis; also perarduus, labōriōsus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“difficult” in Latin

arduuslofty, high, steep, tall, elevated; hard to reach, difficult, laborious, arduous impediōto hinder, impede, prevent, obstruct, hamper, thwart; to embarrass perdifficilisvery difficult etc.perarduusvery difficult labōriōsuslaborious, toilsome, demanding; industrious, hard-working

The English word difficult itself goes back to Latin facilis, through difficultas.

Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864

difficult

dirficilis (hard to execute or accomplish): non facilis (not easy; by Litotes = far from easy): arduus (hard to reach or attain to; stronger than difficilis, of what borders on the impossible): impeditus (intricate, surrounded with difficulties; opposed to expeditus): magni negotii (requiring great labour; opposed to nullius negotii): Very difficult, perdifficilis; perarduus; perimpeditus: a difficult labour (child-birth), partus difficilis or laboriosus: to have a difficult labour, partum difficulter edere: a difficult task, magnum opus atque arduum: a difficult book, *liber difficilis ad intelligendum: a difficult passage, *locus difficilis ad explicandum [☞ locus contortus, bad]: anything is a difficult task, res est magni negotii; magnum opus est atque arduum: I see how difficult the thing is, res quanta sit intelligo: to be difficult, difficilem esse ad persequendum (to be difficult of execution); difficiles habere explicatus (to be difficult to explain; of a passage; Cic., De N.D., 3, 39, 94); difficilem esse ad intelligendum (hard to understand): difficult to be, etc., diflicilis or non facilis, with superlative in u; or with ad and gerundive, or with infinitive, or substantive. [For the difference of these constructions, Vid: EASY.] It is difficult to, difficile or non facile, arduum, or magnum, or magni est, with infinitive.

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for difficult?: The usual Latin words for “difficult” are arduus, impediō, perdifficilis; also perarduus, labōriōsus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.