difficult to refine to

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "difficult to refine to" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when discussing challenges in making something more precise or specific. Example: "The project requirements were difficult to refine to a clear set of objectives."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

However, alleles of small effect are particularly difficult to refine to individual genes and causative mutations.

G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

59 human-written examples

Hassake Province produces heavy crude, which is harder to extract, more difficult to refine and sells at lower prices than lighter oils.

The New York Times

The ores were low-grade, often varied in content, and were difficult to refine.

Britannica

But the oil is difficult to refine, and the huge investment required is hampered by the government's insistence on overvaluing the bolívar.

The Economist

(b) While it may be difficult to refine the Katz test in some instances, in the case of the search of a home’s interior–the prototypical and hence most commonly litigated area of protected privacy–there is a ready criterion, with roots deep in the common law, of the minimal expectation of privacy that exists, and that is acknowledged to be reasonable.

Cornell University

While many retailers try to present product search in a visually appealing way, search can often be slow or difficult to refine.

TechCrunch

The principal solvent was identifiable as benzene from the initial structure solution, but was extremely difficult to refine because it exhibits librational disorder (Fig. 6).

Chemistry Central Journal

It is difficult to refine the Bre2DBM because there is always some discontinuous residual density around the DBM peptide in the electronic density difference map for the final model.

Protein & Cell

(See "The Case For $80 A Barrel Oil") According to Global Insight's Ciszuk, even a large increase from the desert kingdom would not necessarily be a boon the oil would be heavy, sour crude, which is difficult to refine and is currently trading at a big discount.

Forbes

The bill was opposed by Mint Director Robert Patterson, as it would be difficult to refine the silver from melted-down pieces.

Wikipedia

It would be difficult to refine this assessment into a quantitative metric of model value, but as a screening tool it is credible to assess that three of the models did not pass the eco-plausibility test (Table 2).

Plosone

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "difficult to refine to", ensure the context clearly indicates what is being refined and the desired endpoint. Specificity enhances clarity.

Common error

Avoid using "difficult to refine to" in overly broad contexts. Instead, specify the exact aspect that poses a challenge to refine for better understanding.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "difficult to refine to" functions as an adjectival phrase, describing the degree of challenge associated with making something more precise. According to Ludwig AI, the phrase is grammatically correct and usable in written English.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

Science

30%

News & Media

25%

Academia

20%

Less common in

Formal & Business

15%

Encyclopedias

5%

Wiki

5%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "difficult to refine to" is a grammatically correct adjectival phrase used to describe the challenge in making something more precise or specific. While Ludwig AI confirms its usability, it's relatively rare, with applications mostly in scientific, news media, and academic contexts. When using the phrase, ensure that you clearly specify what is being refined and to what end, to prevent overgeneralization and enhance clarity. Alternatives like "hard to narrow down to" and "challenging to specify to" can offer similar meanings with slight variations in emphasis.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

hard to narrow down to

Changes the adjective from "difficult" to "hard" and uses the phrasal verb "narrow down" to convey the act of making something more specific.

challenging to specify to

Replaces "difficult" with "challenging" and "refine" with "specify", indicating a difficulty in being exact or detailed.

tough to distill to

Substitutes "difficult" with "tough" and "refine" with "distill", suggesting a challenge in reducing something to its essential elements.

complicated to pinpoint to

Uses "complicated" instead of "difficult" and "pinpoint" instead of "refine", indicating a difficulty in identifying something with precision.

problematic to reduce to

Replaces "difficult" with "problematic" and "refine" with "reduce", suggesting a challenge in simplifying something to a more basic form.

complex to streamline to

Substitutes "difficult" with "complex" and "refine" with "streamline", highlighting a difficulty in making something more efficient or straightforward.

tricky to hone to

Uses "tricky" instead of "difficult" and "hone" instead of "refine", indicating a subtlety and skill required to achieve precision.

unwieldy to perfect to

Replaces "difficult" with "unwieldy" and "refine" with "perfect", suggesting a difficulty due to something being hard to manage or control.

onerous to calibrate to

Substitutes "difficult" with "onerous" and "refine" with "calibrate", indicating a burdensome challenge in adjusting something accurately.

demanding to fine-tune to

Uses "demanding" instead of "difficult" and "fine-tune" instead of "refine", suggesting a task that requires great effort and precision.

FAQs

How can I use "difficult to refine to" in a sentence?

You can use "difficult to refine to" when describing a challenge in making something more precise or specific. For instance, "The project requirements were difficult to refine to a clear set of objectives."

What are some alternatives to "difficult to refine to"?

Alternatives include "hard to narrow down to", "challenging to specify to", or "tough to distill to" depending on the context.

When is it appropriate to use "difficult to refine to" in writing?

It's appropriate when you want to convey that a process of making something more precise or detailed is proving challenging. It works well in technical, academic, or professional settings.

Is "difficult to refine to" considered formal or informal language?

"Difficult to refine to" leans towards formal language. While understandable in most contexts, it is best suited for professional, academic, or technical writing where precision is valued.