This adjective means difficult, hard, or troublesome—describing something that presents challenges. Mark 10:24 uses it when Jesus says 'how difficult it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God.' Classical Greek used it for people hard to please, situations that are troublesome, or tasks difficult to accomplish. The term emphasizes objective difficulty, not impossibility. Jesus' teaching addresses the genuine challenge wealth poses to discipleship—riches tempt self-reliance, making dependence on God psychologically difficult.