tough game
6
3.0
- noun
- I think that this will be a tough game from each team's perspective.
- play a tough game
- lost a tough game
- really tough game
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Watch on YouTubeYou know, this, this was the toughest game for us, by far the toughest game that we played.
- You know, this, this was the toughest game for us, by far the toughest game that we played.
- It's it's tough, tough places to go, always tough games, but big games that you enjoy.
Examples
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Ball State lost a tough game against Ohio 0-3 on Saturday.
Blog text (3) -
This Saturday, we are expecting a tough game against our biggest rivals.
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I think this will be a tough game, but one we should win.
Blog text (26) -
"Like I said, it's going to be a tough game this week.
Blog text (23) -
I know it's going to be a tough game.
Blog text (10) -
It's the bottom of the eighth inning, and so far it's been a very tough game.
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K. State will be playing Texas on Dec 1; it should be a tough game.
Blog text (23) -
It's another tough game on what is a tough schedule for the 49ers.
Blog text (7) -
From the outset, it looked like this was going to be another tough game for the Jayhawks.
Blog text (15) -
The team prepared all week for what they knew would be a tough game.
Synonyms
4
7.6
A person, question, or thing that is very difficult to deal with
4
5.3
A situation or task that is hard to do
3
3.7
A strong struggle between people to get the same job or prize
Antonyms
How Difficult
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is a straightforward composition of 'tough' (difficult) + 'game' (match), so the sense 'a challenging contest' is directly derivable from the constituents. This is a common adjective + noun pattern found across languages and follows normal English semantics, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily understand it.
Etymology
Tough game paints a clear picture: tough means hard or strong and game means a match, so imagine players fighting and struggling through the whole match. That's why calling a match a tough game means it was very hard or 'difficult' to win.