hardship UK /ˈhɑːdˌʃɪp/US /ˈhɑɹdˌʃɪp/noun 2verb 1forms 3 noun2 •Difficulty or trouble; hard times.He has survived periods of financial hardship before. •A burden, a source of difficulty that could impose a barrier.When you visit the museum, we invite you to make a donation of $10 if this will not be a hardship. verb1 •To treat (a person) badly; to subject to hardships.[…] an adjustment of the income tax could easily produce the twenty millions without hardshipping any industrious person in the community […] — 1969 formshardshipped · hardshipping · hardships