toughen up

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

City Section teams continue to struggle against Southern Section opponents in nonleague games, but many are using the strategy Birmingham has used for years to toughen up before league play begins.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 8, 2025

There's also a wide-ranging sentencing bill expected from the Justice Minister Naomi Long in the next few months, which aims to tighten laws around sentencing for offences and toughen up hate crime legislation.

From BBC • Sep. 7, 2025

I learnt pretty early on that I had to be resilient and toughen up a bit.

From BBC • Mar. 4, 2025

It said low-interest shareholder loans should not be excluded from the scope of the rules, and that changes made in February to toughen up the regulations also breached competition law.

From BBC • Nov. 22, 2024

And if he didn’t toughen up, what would happen to him when there was no Trotter to look after him?

From "The Great Gilly Hopkins" by Katherine Paterson