| No. | Item | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | acute | serious and urgent |
| 2. | adversity | difficult conditions or misfortune |
| 3. | alarming | causing fear or concern |
| 4. | arduous | needing great effort |
| 5. | awkward | hard to manage smoothly |
| 6. | backbreaking | extremely hard physical work |
| 7. | barrier | thing preventing progress |
| 8. | bind | difficult situation |
| 9. | bleak | without much hope |
| 10. | bottleneck | point causing delay |
| 11. | bumpy | uneven and troublesome |
| 12. | burdensome | hard to bear |
| 13. | challenging | testing ability or effort |
| 14. | complex | having many difficult parts |
| 15. | complicated | hard to understand or deal with |
| 16. | complication | extra difficulty or problem |
| 17. | constraining | limiting freedom or action |
| 18. | crippling | severely damaging effectiveness |
| 19. | crisis | time of intense difficulty |
| 20. | critical | extremely important or dangerous |
| 21. | daunting | seeming hard to overcome |
| 22. | demanding | requiring much effort or skill |
| 23. | desperate | showing extreme need or difficulty |
| 24. | dicey | risky or uncertain |
| 25. | difficult | hard to do or handle |
| 26. | dire | extremely serious or urgent |
| 27. | distressing | causing anxiety or sorrow |
| 28. | draining | using up energy or strength |
| 29. | exacting | requiring great care or effort |
| 30. | exhausting | making you very tired |
| 31. | formidable | inspiring fear by difficulty |
| 32. | fraught | filled with tension or problems |
| 33. | frustrating | causing disappointment and difficulty |
| 34. | grave | serious and worrying |
| 35. | hard | not easy; demanding effort |
| 36. | harrowing | extremely distressing |
| 37. | harsh | rough and difficult to endure |
| 38. | hazardous | full of danger or risk |
| 39. | high-pressure | involving intense stress |
| 40. | hopeless | without reasonable hope |
| 41. | hurdle | difficulty to overcome |
| 42. | impasse | situation with no progress |
| 43. | impossible | unable to be done |
| 44. | insurmountable | too great to overcome |
| 45. | intractable | hard to control or solve |
| 46. | intricate | very detailed and complex |
| 47. | knotty | difficult to solve |
| 48. | laborious | requiring much work |
| 49. | limiting | reducing possibilities or progress |
| 50. | messy | complicated and difficult to handle |
| 51. | nerve-racking | causing intense anxiety |
| 52. | obstacle | thing blocking progress |
| 53. | onerous | involving heavy obligations |
| 54. | oppressive | hard to endure mentally |
| 55. | ordeal | very painful or difficult experience |
| 56. | overloaded | given too much to handle |
| 57. | overwhelming | too much to handle |
| 58. | painful | causing suffering or distress |
| 59. | paralyzing | preventing action through fear |
| 60. | perilous | very dangerous |
| 61. | precarious | dangerously unstable or uncertain |
| 62. | predicament | difficult unpleasant situation |
| 63. | problematic | causing difficulties or concerns |
| 64. | punishing | causing severe strain |
| 65. | quandary | state of uncertainty or difficulty |
| 66. | relentless | continuing without relief |
| 67. | restrictive | imposing limiting conditions |
| 68. | risky | involving possible danger or loss |
| 69. | roadblock | something stopping progress |
| 70. | rocky | full of difficulties |
| 71. | rough | difficult or unpleasant |
| 72. | setback | problem causing delay |
| 73. | snag | unexpected problem |
| 74. | sticky | awkwardly difficult |
| 75. | stifling | oppressively restrictive or difficult |
| 76. | strenuous | requiring great exertion |
| 77. | stressful | causing mental pressure |
| 78. | suffocating | overwhelmingly restrictive or stressful |
| 79. | taxing | draining energy or resources |
| 80. | tense | full of strain or anxiety |
| 81. | thorny | causing trouble or difficulty |
| 82. | touch-and-go | uncertain and risky |
| 83. | tough | difficult and demanding |
| 84. | treacherous | dangerously unstable or deceptive |
| 85. | tricky | requiring careful handling |
| 86. | troublesome | causing trouble or difficulty |
| 87. | trying | causing strain or irritation |
| 88. | uncertain | not predictable or settled |
| 89. | unmanageable | too difficult to control |
| 90. | unpredictable | hard to foresee |
| 91. | unsolvable | unable to be solved |
| 92. | unstable | not steady or secure |
| 93. | unworkable | not practical or workable |
| 94. | uphill | requiring sustained difficult effort |
| 95. | urgent | needing immediate attention |
| 96. | vexing | annoyingly difficult |
| 97. | volatile | likely to change suddenly |
| 98. | wearing | causing fatigue over time |
| 99. | wearisome | tiring and tedious |
| 100. | worrying | causing anxiety |