Word.ws English Dictionary

gives someone a hard time

gives someone a hard time is the third-person singular simple present indicative of give someone a hard time.

Meaning of give someone a hard time

Verb

give someone a hard time (third-person singular simple present gives someone a hard time, present participle giving someone a hard time, simple past gave someone a hard time, past participle given someone a hard time)

  1. (idiomatic, informal) To cause difficulty or make trouble for someone.
    • During WWII, German troops gave the Allies a hard time in Italy, but eventually the Allies broke through.
  2. (idiomatic, informal) To tease, kid or rib someone.
    • He's usually pretty good-natured when the children give him a hard time about his bald spot.

Questions about gives someone a hard time

What is gives someone a hard time the third-person singular simple present indicative of?
Gives someone a hard time is the third-person singular simple present indicative of give someone a hard time.

Words near gives someone a hard time in the dictionary

  1. gives rise to
  2. gives somebody time
  3. gives someone a bloody nose
  4. gives someone a break
  5. gives someone a hand
  6. gives someone a hard time
  7. gives someone a lift
  8. gives someone a piece of one's mind
  9. gives someone a ring
  10. gives someone a shout
  11. gives someone a speaking to

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: gives someone a hard time (page history and authors); give someone a hard time (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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