1. difficult to accept.

The terms of the agreement were hard to swallow, but I needed the work.

My father's anger was very hard to swallow.

2. not easy to believe.

We found her excuse hard to swallow.

Related vocabulary: take something with a grain of salt

• have carte blanche
• have clean hands
• have come a long way
• have coming out ears
• have coming out of ears
• have coming out of your ears
• have coming out your ears
• have day in court
• have dead to rights
• have designs on
• have designs on someone
• have designs on something
• have dibs on
• have dibs on something
• have done more something than has had hot dinners
• have done more something than someone has had hot dinners
• have done more than has had hot dinners
• have done more than someone has had hot dinners
• have [done/seen/had etc.] more something than has had hot dinners
• have [done/seen/had etc.] more something than someone has had hot dinners
• have [done/seen/had etc.] more than has had hot dinners
• have [done/seen/had etc.] more than someone has had hot dinners
• have down on like a ton of bricks
• have down on you like a ton of bricks
• have down pat