Jump To:

• die-hard
  die-hard

  noun

  a person who vigorously maintains or defends a seemingly hopeless position, outdated attitude, lost cause, or the like.
• die hard
  die hard

  Take a long time to cease to exist or be dropped from consideration. For example, Old prejudices die hard, or The more radical parts of this proposal will die hard. This idiom alludes to struggling against physical death. [Late 1700s]

die-hard

American  

[dahy-hahrd] / ˈdaɪˌhɑrd /

Or diehard

noun

1. a person who vigorously maintains or defends a seemingly hopeless position, outdated attitude, lost cause, or the like.

---

adjective

1. resisting vigorously and stubbornly to the last; stubborn.

die-hard British  

noun

1. a person who resists change or who holds onto an untenable position or outdated attitude

2. (modifier) obstinately resistant to change

---

die hard Idioms  

1. Take a long time to cease to exist or be dropped from consideration. For example, Old prejudices die hard, or The more radical parts of this proposal will die hard. This idiom alludes to struggling against physical death. [Late 1700s]

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• die-hardism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of die-hard

First recorded in 1835–45; noun, adj. use of verb phrase die hard

Related Words

• old-line
• uncompromising