challenging

1 of 2

adjective

chal·​leng·​ing ˈcha-lən-jiŋ How to pronounce challenging (audio)
Synonyms of challenging
1
: arousing competitive interest, thought, or action
a challenging course of study
a challenging job
2
: invitingly provocative : fascinating entry 1
a challenging personality
challenging questions
challengingly
ˈcha-lən-jiŋ-lē How to pronounce challenging (audio)
adverb

challenging

2 of 2

present participle of challenge entry 1

Synonyms of challenging

Relevance

Adjective

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of challenging in a Sentence

Adjective I find the job challenging and fun. Teaching is challenging but rewarding work. It's a challenging book that requires careful reading. The slope was challenging for even the most experienced climbers.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Adjective
Such calculations are part of a wider effort to understand why molecular simulations remain challenging. — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2026 What were the most challenging sets to construct and animate for Wildwood? — Kat Chen, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Oct. 2026 These symptoms, if left untreated, can be enormously challenging for women and their families. — Lyndon Haviland, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026 Other recent studies show just how challenging this process could truly be. — Sven Badoux, New Atlas, 23 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for challenging

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

see challenge entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1841, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of challenging was in 1841

Browse Nearby Words

challenger
challenging
challengingly
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Challenging.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/challenging. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of milieu

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All