kantapään kautta

Finnish

Etymology

kantapään (“heel”) (in the genitive) kautta (“via, through”), "through the heel"

Phrase

kantapään kautta

1. (idiomatic) the hard way (from experience, sometimes tough)

Usage notes

Often used in connection with the verb oppia (“to learn”): oppia kantapään kautta (“to learn the hard way”), but other verbs are also used.