a tough row to hoe

a difficult situation to deal with The author said that he knew it would be a tough row to hoe when he began research for this book.

Informal

A difficult situation to endure.

Name	Pronounced	Usage
Grigoriy	gree-GO-ree	Russian
Katerina	-	Macedonian, Russian, Bulgarian, Greek, Late Roman
Maud	[mɔd]
Darla	DAHR-lə	English
Sanderson	['sændəsn]
TÓDor	-	Hungarian