harsh, cruel, tough, hard, rough

Question

I would like to ask you if all of above adjective are interchangeable or not,

Can I say "Everyone after bad relationship passing through harsh time"?
Can I say "It is a cruel feeling when I find my wife is cheating on me"?

Wilpeter · Accepted Answer

harsh, cruel, tough, hard, rough?
These are more to do with behaviour than feelings:

harsh – climate, words, punishment
cruel – uncaring nature, deliberately critical, unfeeling attitude
tough – accustomed to something, aggressive, historically resistant to wear
hard – not easy, prison doing hard time, a hard life (no breaks)
rough – unpolished, uncaring, similar to cruel, (not always deliberately)

Spoken of a relationship, “They had a bad relationship and afterwards went through some hard/rough/tough times.”
Spoken of personal feelings, “When I found my wife had been cheating on me, I felt she had been cruel and I was disappointed.” (I don’t feel any of the five adjectives fit the word feelings.)

I would not say, “Everyone after had relationship passing through harsh time.” Perhaps, “Everyone who has suffered from a bad relationship has been through some harsh times.”

Samerrustom · Answer

Thank you for your help.
Can I use any of them in our daily life or work life like this sentence :
"Sometimes I face harsh time at work. Especially, at the begnning of each month."

Wilpeter · Answer

“Sometimes I face harsh times at work—especially at the beginning of each month.”
(The second phrase had no verb, so it should be joined).

harsh, cruel, tough, hard, rough

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