a hard/tough nut (to crack)

noun phrase

: a person or thing that is difficult to deal with, understand, or influence

The team's defense is a tough nut to crack.

The problem is a hard nut to crack.

He's a tough nut, but I think I can get him to agree to the contract.

Examples of a hard/tough nut (to crack) in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While the women’s market in the U.S. has been a tough nut to crack for Dockers, the brand performs well internationally, MacLennan said in a late 2023 interview. —Jean E. Palmieri, WWD, 4 Oct. 2024

The rougher news is that figuring out how generative AI ought to optimally leverage the multiple chain-of-thought instances is an open issue and a tough nut to crack. —Lance Eliot, Forbes, 19 Sep. 2024

The largest shale play outside North America has proven to be a tough nut to crack over the last decade. —David Blackmon, Forbes, 4 Sep. 2024

Is there any possible redemption for Kreese? Heald: There’s always a possibility, but Kreese is a tough nut to crack. —Selena Kuznikov, Variety, 19 July 2024

But the Riemann hypothesis is a tough nut to crack. —Manon Bischoff, Scientific American, 1 July 2024

As the most mysterious of the three amateur detectives/podcasters at the center of Only Murders in the Building, Mabel (Selena Gomez) is initially a tough nut to crack. —Marcus Jones, EW.com, 24 Feb. 2022

There are many other types of oaks to love, and telling them apart can be a tough nut to crack. —Mark Gozonsky, Los Angeles Times, 1 June 2023

For organizations layered in functional metrics and driving a cost agenda, this is a tough nut to crack. —Lora Cecere, Forbes, 19 Apr. 2023