What is the Latin word for tough?

The usual Latin words for “tough” are lentus, tenāx, difficilis; also arduus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“tough” in Latin

lentussticky, tenacious; slow, sluggish; flexible, pliant tenāxclinging; tenacious; close-fisted, niggardly, stingy difficilisdifficult, hard, troublesome; obstinate, intractable, hard to please or manage arduuslofty, high, steep, tall, elevated; hard to reach, difficult, laborious, arduous

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

tough

lentus (not brittle; opposed to fragilis): tenax (tenacious; PROP. and figuratively): difficilis, arduus (figuratively, difficult).

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for tough?: The usual Latin words for “tough” are lentus, tenāx, difficilis; also arduus. 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.