tribulation
n. C / Un. a very difficult or painful experience. It is often used to describe a long period of suffering or trouble.
n. a period of great suffering, distress, or affliction. Often carries a religious or literary tone, implying a trial of faith or character.
The family faced many tribulations during the war.
After years of financial tribulation, the small business finally found a stable market and began to grow.
The protagonist's journey is defined by a series of tribulations that test his resolve and force him to confront the harsh realities of his environment.
From Middle English tribulation, from Old French tribulacion, from Late Latin trībulātiō (“distress, trouble, tribulation, affliction”), from Latin tribulāre (“to press, probably also thresh out grain”), from trībulum (“a sledge consisting of a wooden block studded with sharp pieces of flint or with iron teeth, used for threshing grain”), from terēre (“to rub”); see trite.