hard to swallow
/hɑːrd tuː ˈswɑːloʊ/
Meaning
When something is 'hard to swallow,' it is difficult to accept, believe, or tolerate. This can refer to harsh truths, disappointing news, criticism, or highly improbable explanations that sound like lies.
Examples
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Losing the match after leading by three goals was a bitter pill that was hard to swallow.
Losing the match after leading by three goals was a bitter pill that was hard to swallow.
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His excuse about his dog eating his homework was a bit hard to swallow.
His excuse about his dog eating his homework was a bit hard to swallow.
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It was hard to swallow when she told me that my writing style was too repetitive.
It was hard to swallow when she told me that my writing style was too repetitive.
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The news of the company's bankruptcy was hard to swallow for all the employees.
The news of the company's bankruptcy was hard to swallow for all the employees.
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It's hard to swallow, but we have to admit that our competitors have a better product.
It's hard to swallow, but we have to admit that our competitors have a better product.
Common Mistakes
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✗ The bad news was difficult to gulp.
✓ The bad news was hard to swallow.
'Hard to swallow' is a fixed figurative idiom; you cannot replace 'swallow' with literal synonyms like 'gulp' or 'chew'.
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✗ His story was hard to swallow down.
✓ His story was hard to swallow.
Do not add the prepositional particle 'down' to this figurative idiom, even though you literally swallow food down.
Related Expressions
Practice
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The realization that we had failed was extremely ___.
💡 difficult to accept
Show answer
hard to swallow
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Her explanation for why she was late was just too ___.
💡 unbelievable or difficult to accept
Show answer
hard to swallow