uphill

uphill battle and uphill struggle

Fig. a hard struggle. Convincing the senator to see our point of view was an uphill battle, but we finally succeeded.

See also: battle

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an uphill battle/fight/struggle  also an uphill job/task

if something you are trying to do is an uphill struggle, it is very difficult, often because other people are causing problems for you Environmentalists face an uphill struggle convincing people to use their cars less. We're trying to expand our business, but it's an uphill battle.

See also: battle