Synonyms of Hard Puzzle

You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it.

I’m Martha Barnette.

And I’m Grant Barrett.

And here he is, John Chaneski, our quiz guy in New York.

Hi, John.

Hi, Grant.

Hi, Martha.

Now, you guys know, when I talk about puzzles or quizzes or trivia with people, I avoid using the word hard because it seems to only have a bad connotation to most people. People always ask me, is your trivia hard? And I always say, it’s challenging. Because that’s what fits my philosophy of puzzles and games. Challenge yourself, try, play, don’t be intimidated, go and do it, right?

So, since I don’t get a lot of use out of the word hard, I thought I’d use it in this quiz. What I did, I looked up a whole bunch of synonyms and near synonyms of the word hard, so this is my really hard quiz.

Okay.

For example, the titular character of a popular Netflix series is described with this adjective, even in the title. In other words, she’s the hard Kimmy Schmidt.

Unbreakable.

Yes, exactly. Hard, unbreakable. Very good.

So I’ll give you some variations on the word that we’re going for, and then also a use of the word in other words.

Okay.

Okay?

All right.

Here we go. This word for a state of matter is used as an adjective that describes electronics that use semiconductor devices instead of electron tubes. In other words, it’s a hard state radio.

Solid.

Solid state.

Yes, solid state radio. Very good.

This word can mean a company, and it’s often used to describe cheese or a handshake. Though you might say hard cheese, you’d rarely say hard handshake.

Firm.

Yes, firm. Very good. Hard is firm.

This word is an adjective that describes revolutionaries or others engaged in defiance. It can also mean not likely to be affected by. In other words, my watch is water hard to 50 meters.

Proof, proof.

No, resistant.

Water resistant. That’s where we get the rebels. Revolutionaries and rebels are resistant, yes.

This word means having the properties of a mixture of iron and carbon. In another sense, or in other words, you might be a fan of the 70s rock band Hard Dan.

Steely.

Steely Dan.

Steely.

Steely Dan.

This word means powerful or done with a great deal of force. In other words, you might be nostalgic for the cartoon hero Hardmouse.

Mighty.

Mighty Mouse.

Mighty. Mighty. Mighty is hard.

This word means difficult to bear or unpleasant. In other words, try to stay out of the way of the hard reaper.

Grim.

Grim, yes.

This word can be a noun meaning the back of the boat or an adjective meaning unsympathetic and severe. In other words, you might be a fan of Howard Hard.

Howard Stern.

Howard Stern is right.

Finally, this word can refer to a problem that’s like a tangled rope. In other words, you might look to hard pine for lumber that’s used in paneling and furniture.

Naughty.

Naughty is correct. Naughty is high. You guys spelled with a K.

Yes, exactly. K-N-O-T-T-Y.

You guys found that hard quiz to be pretty easy, I think.

Yeah, sure.

Yeah, easier than usual. You threw us some softballs. We’re in trouble next week, though, I bet.

Okay, we’ll see.

John, thank you so much.

Thanks, buddy.

Thanks, guys.

Bye-bye.

Take care.

This is a show where we talk about language in all its glory. So call us, 877-929-9673, or send us your stories about language to words@waywordradio.org.