different between tough vs impenetrable

English

Etymology

From Middle English tough, towgh, tou, to?, from Old English t?h (“tough, tenacious, holding fast together; pliant; sticky, glutinous, clammy”), from Proto-West Germanic *t??h(?), from Proto-Germanic *tanhuz (“fitting; clinging; tenacious; tough”), from Proto-Indo-European *den?- (“to bite”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: t?f, IPA^(key): /t?f/
• Rhymes: -?f
• Homophone: tuff

Adjective

tough (comparative tougher, superlative toughest)

1. Strong and resilient; sturdy.

   The tent, made of tough canvas, held up to many abuses.

2. (of food) Difficult to cut or chew.

   To soften a tough cut of meat, the recipe suggested simmering it for hours.

3. Rugged or physically hardy.

   Only a tough species will survive in the desert.

4. Stubborn.

   He had a reputation as a tough negotiator.

5. (of weather etc) Harsh or severe.
6. Rowdy or rough.

   A bunch of the tough boys from the wrong side of the tracks threatened him.

7. (of questions, etc.) Difficult or demanding.

   This is a tough crowd.

8. (material science) Undergoing plastic deformation before breaking.

Derived terms

Translations

Interjection

tough

1. (slang) Used to indicate lack of sympathy

   If you don't like it, tough!

Translations

Noun

tough (plural toughs)

1. A person who obtains things by force; a thug or bully.

Translations

Verb

tough (third-person singular simple present toughs, present participle toughing, simple past and past participle toughed)

1. To endure.
2. To toughen.

Derived terms

• tough out

Translations

Anagrams

• ought

German

Etymology

From English tough; see also German taff.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /taf/

Adjective

tough (comparative tougher, superlative am toughsten or am toughesten)

1. (slang) Alternative form of taff (“tough; robust; assertive and not overly sensitive”)

Declension

declension with am toughsten

declension with am toughesten

Further reading

• “tough” in Duden online

Middle English

Noun

tough

1. Alternative form of tow

English

Etymology

From Middle French impenetrable, from Latin impenetrabilis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?m?p?n?t??b?l/, /?m?p?n?t??b?l/
• Hyphenation: im?pen?e?tra?ble

Adjective

impenetrable (not comparable)

1. Not penetrable.

   The fortress is impenetrable, so it cannot be taken.

   • The avalanche spread and stopped, locking everything it carried into an icy cocoon. It was now a jagged, virtually impenetrable pile of ice, longer than a football field and nearly as wide.

2. (figuratively) Incomprehensible; fathomless; inscrutable.

   Business jargon makes this document impenetrable, I can't understand it.

3. Opaque; obscure; not translucent or transparent.

   When night falls, she cloaks the world in impenetrable darkness.

Synonyms

• (not penetrable): impregnable, unfathomable
• (incomprehensible): See also Thesaurus:incomprehensible

Antonyms

• (not penetrable): penetrable, pregnable, fathomable
• (incomprehensible): See also Thesaurus:comprehensible

Translations

Catalan

Etymology

From Latin impenetr?bilis.

Adjective

impenetrable (masculine and feminine plural impenetrables)

1. impenetrable

Further reading

• “impenetrable” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “impenetrable” in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana.
• “impenetrable” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “impenetrable” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin impenetr?bilis.

Adjective

impenetrable (plural impenetrables)

1. impenetrable

Further reading

• “impenetrable” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.