toilsome

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From toil +‎ -some.

Pronunciation
  • (UK) IPA(key): /ˈtɔɪlsəm/

Adjective

toilsome (comparative more toilsome, superlative most toilsome)

  1. Requiring continuous physical effort; laborious.
    • 1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book V, Canto X”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:
      ‘And you, Sir knight,’ / (Said she) ‘that taken have this toylesome paine / For wretched woman […]!’
    • 1940 July, “Notes and News: Timetables in South Africa”, in Railway Magazine, page 422:
      The whole of the interior of South Africa is, of course, one vast plateau at a considerable elevation, and all the main lines coming up from the coast have some toilsome climbing.

Derived terms

Translations
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.