grammar · neutral

Have difficulty / Have trouble + V-ing

Band 5-6speakingtask2

To experience problems or find something hard to do.

Examples

“Many students have difficulty understanding abstract concepts.”

“She had trouble sleeping after the exam.”

“I have difficulty remembering names.”

Band 8 sentence

“Many immigrants have difficulty understanding bureaucratic procedures in a foreign language.”

Collocations

  • have difficulty + V-ing
  • have trouble + V-ing

Word family

difficulty nountrouble noun

Common mistakes

I have difficulty to concentrate.→I have difficulty concentrating.

She had trouble to sleep last night.→She had trouble sleeping last night.

Say it for a higher band

5struggle + to V→6have problems + to V→7+have difficulty / have trouble + V-ing

Synonyms

struggle to + V

find it difficult to + V

Easily confused

have difficulty + V-ing vs find it difficult to + V

“I find it difficult to explain my feelings.”

Related words

look forward to + V-ingtry + V-ing / try to + Vfor + somebody + to + Vavoid + V-ingbe likely to + Vbegin / start + V-ing / to + Vprevent + somebody + from + V-ingturn out + to + V

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In Gerunds & infinitives

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