| Library / English Dictionary |
CHALLENGING
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (adjective)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Requiring full use of your abilities or resources
Example:
performed the most challenging task without a mistake
Synonyms:
ambitious; challenging
Classified under:
Similar:
difficult; hard (not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Disturbingly provocative
Example:
an intriguing smile
Synonyms:
challenging; intriguing
Classified under:
Similar:
provocative (serving or tending to provoke, excite, or stimulate; stimulating discussion or exciting controversy)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Stimulating interest or thought
Example:
a thought-provoking book
Synonyms:
challenging; thought-provoking
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
stimulating (rousing or quickening activity or the senses)
II. (verb)
Sense 1
-ing form of the verb challenge
Context examples:
Bennu also revealed itself to be more rugged than expected, challenging the mission team to alter its flight and sample collection plans, due to the rough terrain.
(NASA Mission Reveals Asteroid Has Big Surprises, NASA)
The process of successfully managing difficult or challenging situations.
(Coping, NCI Thesaurus)
Hypersensitivity reactions which occur within minutes of exposure to challenging antigen due to the release of histamine which follows the antigen-antibody reaction and causes smooth muscle contraction and increased vascular permeability.
(Immediate Hypersensitivity, NLM, Medical Subject Headings)
Landing on Ceres to investigate its interior would be technically challenging and would risk contaminating the dwarf planet.
(Dawn Finds Possible Ancient Ocean Remnants at Ceres, NASA)
However, studying the internal structure of eggshells can be challenging because of the ease with which they break when under analysis.
(Study paves way for healthier and more robust eggs, University of Granada)
Liquid water on today's Mars may be limited to traces of dissolved moisture from the atmosphere and thin films, which are challenging environments for life as we know it.
(Recurring Martian Streaks: Flowing Sand, Not Water?, NASA)
Saturn always shows us there is more to learn, and that’s how you gain wisdom, through new, challenging experiences.
(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)
Various efforts to measure water in Jupiter’s atmosphere, including NASA’s current Juno mission, have proved challenging.
(Water common – yet scarce – in exoplanets, University of Cambridge)
The old awe departed, and they grew equal to challenging his authority.
(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)
He was challenging my manhood with his slurs, challenging the very legs he claimed to be instrumental in getting for me.
(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)
