Skip to main content
to face a challenge

to face a challenge

5 3.9
Deal with a difficult problem or situation
  • phrasal verb
: enfrentar un desafío
  • As automation professionals, engineers, and technicians, we face a challenge.
  • now face a challenge
  • never faced a challenge
  • immediately faced a challenge

Who do you go to when you face a challenge?

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • She knew that if she wanted to pass the exam, she had to face a challenge head-on.

  • Every department in the country is facing a challenge because we don't have space in our curriculum.

    Academic text (2008)
  • Your generation has come of age, facing a challenge like no other generation before you.

  • Our nation is facing a challenge unlike it's faced in decades.

  • When people face a challenge, they sometimes talk about taking a deep breath to find courage or strength.

  • Learning to face a challenge and succeed is an essential skill.

    Blog text (29)
  • The public schools certainly face a challenge in meeting the expectations of the lay public in terms of pupil achievement.

    Academic text (2000)
  • In 108 years, our employees have never faced a challenge like the one that confronts us now.

    Blog text (8)
  • So the next time that you are facing a challenge—physical or mental—do your best.

    Blog text (21)
  • If the United States remains in a state of Walpolian inertia, it may soon face a challenge to the very nature of American federalism and its relationship with Latin America.

    Academic text (1997)

Synonyms

to face
vsto face a challenge
∞ 2.2

To deal with a difficult situation or person

is the general act of dealing with or confronting difficulties
to confront
vsto face a challenge
359 4.4

Face a difficult problem or fear directly and bravely

is broader meaning to deal with or handle hard situations
to cope with
vsto face a challenge
150 2.9

Manage a difficult problem, situation or strong feeling

focuses more on confronting rather than simply managing
to tackle (the problem)
vsto face a challenge
5 3.0

To try hard to solve a problem

emphasizes general confronting rather than energetic effort
to take on the challenge
vsto face a challenge
3 3.2

To accept a difficult task to test yourself

means to deal with or confront a problem after acceptance
to handle a situation
vsto face a challenge
3 3.2

To deal with a problem or difficult event well

is more about confronting obstacles rather than just managing them
to face an issue
vsto face a challenge
3.3

To deal directly and openly with a problem

is about dealing with obstacles rather than only naming problems
to take the challenge head-on
vsto face a challenge
  • Informal
3.9

To face a difficult problem directly and work hard to solve it

is about dealing with difficulties rather than only accepting tasks
to navigate tough situations
vsto face a challenge
5.1

To deal with difficult situations calmly and successfully

is about direct confrontation, not only careful management
to weather the challenge
vsto face a challenge
7.0

Manage to get through a difficult situation

involves active dealing or confronting, not only surviving

Antonyms

∞ 1.0

Choose not to pay attention to someone or something

Avoid doing something because you feel afraid or unsure

How Difficult

to face a challenge
5 3.9

Surface Forms

face a challenge infinitive
faced a challenge past participle
facing a challenge present participle
faces a challenge third person singular

Morphology

face + a + challenge

The meaning 'to deal with or confront a difficult situation' is directly and transparently composed from 'face' (to confront/deal with) plus 'challenge' (a difficult task); the article 'a' is semantically light and does not obscure meaning. This straightforward compositional pattern is common cross-linguistically, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would readily infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Face a challenge comes from a simple picture: you turn your face toward a hard thing, like a person in a contest or a high wall, ready to meet the challenge. That's why it now means 'to deal with or confront a difficult situation'.