toilsome

[ toil-suhm ]
See synonyms for: toilsometoilsomely on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. characterized by or involving toil; laborious or fatiguing.

Origin of toilsome

1
First recorded in 1575–85; toil1 + -some1

Other words for toilsome

Other words from toilsome

  • toil·some·ly, adverb
  • toil·some·ness, noun

Words Nearby toilsome

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use toilsome in a sentence

  • But the way was toilsome, the heat intense, and the water scarce—more so than it had been on the outward journey.

    Hunting the Lions | R.M. Ballantyne
  • The Esperanza got up to her consorts, and then the usual toilsome monotony of the fisherman's life began.

    The Chequers | James Runciman
  • This made the march long and toilsome, though we never had a chance to fire a shot.

  • With their assistance, Cæsar was enabled to advance, by slow and toilsome steps, into the bosom of the hills.

    The Spy | J. Fenimore Cooper
  • As a general rule, no effort is made to march troops through these hills, for it is at once toilsome, useless and dangerous.

    The Cradle of Mankind | W.A. Wigram

British Dictionary definitions for toilsome

toilsome

toilful

/ (ˈtɔɪlsəm) /


adjective
  1. laborious

Derived forms of toilsome

  • toilsomely or toilfully, adverb
  • toilsomeness or toilfulness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012