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Tough as nails

Idiomatic Phrase
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

An idiom describing someone who is extremely resilient, strong, and unaffected by hardship or emotion, likening their toughness to the hardness and durability of metal nails.

Detailed Definition
Tough as nails means extremely resilient, hardy, strong, or difficult to damage. In poetry, the idiom uses a hard, practical object to express endurance of body, mind, or character. It can describe workers, survivors, soldiers, elderly people, activists, or emotionally guarded figures. A poet may admire such toughness, but also ask what pain produced it and what tenderness it conceals. The phrase is useful for exploring survival, hardness, labour, and the cost of becoming difficult to break.
Example
Example in poetry:
A frontier poem might describe the widow as tough as nails when drought takes the farm; In a boxing poem, the old trainer is tough as nails but gentle with frightened boys; The phrase means extremely strong and resilient; A poet can use it for character.
Additional Notes
Tough as nails means extremely resilient, hard, or able to endure pain and pressure. The nail image suggests metal, construction, and the ability to withstand blows. In poetry, it can describe workers, survivors, fighters, mothers, old sailors, or stubborn landscapes. Students should ask whether toughness protects life or prevents tenderness. It pairs well with hammers, timber, scars, hands, and the complex dignity of endurance.
Also Known As
resilient
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