Simple, Easy, Difficult, Hard?

African mathematician from the 1700s, Thomas Fuller, reminds us that, “all things are difficult until they are easy.” Mr. Fuller was kidnapped, brought to Virginia, and was enslaved at age 14.  He was a mathematical genius and often referred to as being an extraordinary mental calculator.  Mr. Fuller knew what is meant for life to be difficult until certain aspects became easier.

We often use the words, ‘simple’ and ‘easy’, interchangeably.  But, I see slight and key differences.  For example, knowing that smoking is toxic to your health is simple, right?  But, is it easy to quit smoking?  For most people the answer is ‘no.’ According to Prasanna, “Simple means something basic or not complicated. The meaning of easy is something that is not difficult. Easy means something accomplished without exertion. Basic means something simple and effectively comprehended. In any case, it can’t be accomplished without exertion.  Simple is the most noteworthy type of knowledge…Easy implies understanding something all around ok to disclose it to a five-year-old kid and getting her to concur. The best illustration of the contrast between easy and simple is composing. You can choose to plunk down and compose a book, which is simple as you should simply type on your computer. While it appears to be basic, composing isn’t …easy. You can basically compose words, however, it’s difficult to have them bode well with a plot and nitty-gritty characters” (https://www.aplustopper.com/simple-vs-easy/#google_vignette).

When is it more appropriate to use the word, ‘simple’? Because ‘simple’ is an adjective, it describes something as not being complex or luxurious.  It implies essential, plain, and uncomplicated. It can mean modest or average.  And, it has also been used to describe someone as unintelligent, childlike,  unenlightened. ‘Easy’ is also an adjective.  From the Oxford English Dictionary, ‘easy’ means, “uncomplicated, not difficult, undemanding, unchallenging, effortless, trouble-free, straightforward, docile, manageable, natural, calm, leisurely” (www.oed.com).

So, what’s the difference between ‘simple’ and ‘easy’?  Of course, there are many things that are simple, but aren’t easy.  Go back to the example mentioned earlier of sitting down to compose a book.  It’s ‘simple,’ right?  All you have to do is sit at your desk in front of your computer and type, right? But, is it ‘easy’?  On the first day of your starting to compose your masterpiece book, one of the dogs is sick and throwing up.  The 6-7 hours of peaceful writing time you’d allocated blows up and you have to take the dog to the vet.  Okay, that wasn’t easy.  So, you plan to start writing the next day, but there’s a bad storm that knocks out your electricity.  Is it simple to know that you have to start writing in order to publish a book? No.  Is it easy to do? Not always.

What are examples of things in your life that are simple to comprehend, but are not easy to enact?  Here is an example from my life to get you thinking: It’s simple to know that we are all connected - the cosmos, plants, animals, humans.  It’s not easy, though, to want to be connected to people who are hateful, cruel, judgmental, arrogant, who aren’t compassionate, who don’t demonstrate empathy, who vote against the good for all.

A similar conundrum occurs when using the words, ‘difficult’ and ‘hard.’ What are the differences? ‘Difficult’ is an adjective; ‘hard’ can be an adjective or an adverb. “Hard and difficult both describe something that requires effort. Hard often refers to physical tasks or materials, while difficult is more about mental challenges or complex situations. Remember, hard can also mean solid, which difficult does not. Hard is often used to describe tasks or situations that require effort or are physically solid. It can also refer to something that is not easy to break or bend. Learners often use hard and difficult interchangeably, but they are not always synonyms. Hard can describe physical properties, which difficult cannot. Avoid using difficult for physical descriptions.  Think of hard as something you can touch (like a rock), and difficult as something you think about (like a math problem)” (https://wordlevel.net/en/confusing-words/hard-vs-difficult/).  According to the Oxford English Dictionary, ‘hard’ means, “requiring a great deal of effort or endurance, solid / firm / resistant to pressure, tough, challenging… [‘difficult’ means] needing much effort of skill to accomplish, not easy to deal with or understand challenging, arduous, complex” (www.oed.com).  They are often used interchangeably in everyday language, but ‘hard’ is designated for physical descriptions and ‘difficult’ is allowed for mental challenges.  For example, would ‘hard’ or ‘difficult’ be most appropriately used in the following sentences?

• It was a ____________ (hard or difficult) decision to make.

• The puzzle was ____________ (hard or difficult) to solve.

• The puzzle was _____________ (hard or difficult to put together.

[difficult, difficult, hard,]

Simple isn’t always easy; difficult isn’t hard. Thanks for stopping scrolling to read my blog post.  I hope you found it entertaining and informative. Please share your thoughts, insights, and suggestions by either commenting below this post if you are reading this on social media, or, if you are reading this through your email subscription, please share, by emailing me, at reimaginelife22@gmail.com. I invite you to subscribe to my blog at www.reimaginelifecoach.com .