the school of hard knocks
the SKOOL uv HARD NOKS
ðə skuːl əv hɑːrd nɒksListen
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Syllable breakdown
Dictionary meaning
the harsh education provided by difficult life experiences, personal setbacks, and practical adversity rather than formal schooling; the idea that surviving and learning from hardship is itself a powerful and invaluable form of education that no classroom can fully replicate; used both with pride by those who credit their own resilience and practical wisdom to hard experience, and as a gentle acknowledgement that not everyone has had access to conventional educational pathways
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