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Glite Dictionary
to hack it

to hack it

14 8.0
Succeed in a difficult situation
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
: arreglárselas
  • You don't think I can hack it anymore?
  • just can't hack it
  • think you can hack it
  • hack it on your own

I'm just gonna hack it and pray that you don't hate me.

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Examples

  • After facing many obstacles, she knew she could hack it if she stayed determined and focused.

  • I just can't hack it.

    Village of the Damned (1995)

  • I could hack it, but it would take too long.

    Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)

  • So do you think a New York City girl like you can hack it?

    Mrs. Ashboro's Cat (2003)

  • Think you can hack it in the long run?"

    Fiction book (1993)

  • You're here to hack it.

    The Gingerweed Man (2021)

  • I just couldn't hack it anymore.

    The Park Is Mine (1986)

  • That got him thinking for a moment: maybe he could hack it as a freelance writer.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Then he'd have to remind her how, for a whole year, he'd worked in the spinning room in the mill until finally, he just couldn't hack it anymore.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • Even in a tough environment, he believed he could hack it and make a success of his new job.

Synonyms

to beat the odds
vsto hack it
19 5.3

To succeed despite great difficulty or low chances

means to succeed or manage in difficulty without suggesting improbability
to hack
vsto hack it
  • Informal
18 8.0

To be able to deal with a difficult situation

is neutral in tone and means succeed or manage in hard situations
to navigate tough situations
vsto hack it
5.1

To deal with difficult situations calmly and successfully

is about achieving success or coping rather than the guiding process

Antonyms

to fail
∞ 1.0

Not succeed in doing something you wanted to do

How Capable

to thrive
233 3.2
to excel
81 3.7
to hack it
  • Informal
14 8.0
to manage
199 2.3
to cope
286 2.9

Surface Forms

hack it infinitive
hacked it past
hacked it past participle
hacking it present participle
hacks it third person singular

Morphology

hack + it

The meaning 'to succeed or manage' is partially derivable because one attested sense of 'hack' is 'to cope/handle', and adding the pronoun 'it' signals managing a situation. However, 'hack' has multiple unrelated senses (cut, computer intrusion) and the verb+pronoun pattern is somewhat idiomatic, so a B1 learner who only knows more literal senses may not predict this usage.

Etymology

The phrasal verb hack it may come from the image of someone hacking, that is chopping, through thick branches or hard ground until they get through. So if you can hack it, you can 'manage' or 'succeed' in a hard situation.