What’s the difference? 어렵다 vs. 힘들다 (Both mean “difficult” or “hard”.)

The most "basic" translation for "to be difficult" or "to be hard" is 어렵다.

어렵다 is conjugated like the following.

- 어려워요. = It's difficult. (present tense)
- 어려울 거예요. = It will be difficult. (future tense)
- 어려웠어요. = It was difficult. (past tense)
- 어려운 = difficult (adjective form)

When you talk about an exam's difficulty level being high, you say 어렵다. It's a 어려운 시험. When a question is a tough question, it's a 어려운 질문.

- 어려운 시험 a difficult test
- 어려운 질문 a difficult question
- 어려운 퀴즈 a difficult quiz
- 어려운 게임 a difficult game

But you can also use 어렵다 when the situation is tough. ⬇️

When things are tough, or you are going through difficult times or some kind of struggle, you can use 어렵다, too. And for this meaning, you can also use 힘들다.

힘들다 originally means "힘이 들다", which means "strength is required" or "effort is needed". When something requires effort/strength/energy, it is not an easy task.

So when things are tough or when you are struggling, you can say 어렵다 or 힘들다.

- 요즘 어려워요. = Things are tough these days.
- 요즘 힘들어요. = Things are tough these days.
- 요즘 공부가 힘들어요. = I am having trouble with studying these days.
- 일이 힘들어요. = Work is tough.
- 이사 때문에 힘들어요. = I'm stressed because of moving (to a new place).

And with 힘들다, because 힘 literally means "strength", it can also be used to talk about physically demanding activities. 힘든 운동 is a tiring or tough exercise.

In summary, f you are JUST talking about the difficulty level of something, you use 어렵다. But when things are tough and the situation is stressful, you can use either 어렵다 or 힘들다.