harden
to make hard or harder: to harden steel.
to make pitiless or unfeeling: to harden one's heart.
to make rigid or unyielding; stiffen: The rigors of poverty hardened his personality.
to strengthen or confirm, especially with reference to character, intentions, feelings, etc.; reinforce.
to make hardy, robust, or capable of endurance; toughen.
Military. to reinforce the structure of (a military or strategic installation) to protect it from nuclear bombardment.
to become hard or harder.
to become pitiless or unfeeling.
to become rigid or unyielding; stiffen: His personality hardened over the years.
to become confirmed or strengthened: His resistance hardened.
to become inured or toughened: The troops hardened under constant fire.
Commerce. (of a market, prices, etc.)
to cease to fluctuate; firm: When the speculators withdrew from the market, the prices hardened.
to rise higher.
Origin of harden
1Other words for harden
Opposites for harden
Other words from harden
- hard·en·a·ble, adjective
- hard·en·a·bil·i·ty, noun
- o·ver·hard·en, verb
- pre·hard·en, verb (used with object)
- re·hard·en, verb
- un·hard·en, verb (used with object)
- un·hard·en·a·ble, adjective
Words Nearby harden
Other definitions for Harden (2 of 2)
Sir Arthur, 1865–1940, English biochemist: Nobel Prize 1929.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use harden in a sentence
A lot of publishers are emerging leaner and battle-hardened from the worst of the coronavirus.
‘We’re about hiring journalists’: Insider Inc. launches third global news hub in Singapore | Lucinda Southern | September 17, 2020 | DigidayThese included battle-hardened forces from Misurata, Bashagha’s home city, which is a political and military power in its own right.
Like Westbrook, harden is also 31, though his game relies far less on his athleticism.
Everything Should Be On The Table For The Houston Rockets. Even James Harden’s Future. | Chris Herring (chris.herring@fivethirtyeight.com) | September 14, 2020 | FiveThirtyEightWestbrook, harden and Gordon are, in their purest form, head-down drivers who love attacking the basket, while the latter two plus Covington and Tucker can’t be left alone behind the arc.
The Rockets’ New Starting Lineup Is Just Scratching The Surface Of Its Potential | Michael Pina | September 8, 2020 | FiveThirtyEightThe beetle can also breathe underwater via air pockets tucked under its hardened wings.
Some beetles can be eaten by a frog, then walk out the other end | Jonathan Lambert | September 4, 2020 | Science News For Students
How great would it be if Michaela Watkins or Marcia Gay harden was nominated for the canceled Trophy Wife?
harden and former SNL star Michaela Watkins mine nuanced brilliance out of what could easily be ex-wife clichés.
These 5 ‘On the Bubble’ TV Shows Shouldn’t Be Canceled | Kevin Fallon | April 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIn the meantime, expect attitudes to harden—and the country to remain at impasse.
The show really jumps back and forth through time this season, flashing back to the arbitration scenes with Marcia Gay harden.
Jeff Daniels on the Most Explosive Episode of ‘The Newsroom’ Yet | Marlow Stern | August 26, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTFallon: This cast is so stacked with talent—Whitford, harden, Watkins—that I expected Akerman to drown here.
Fall-Winter TV Preview: Snap Judgments of 2013–14’s New Shows | Jace Lacob, Kevin Fallon | July 16, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTAs soon as the boy begins to harden, shell care no more for him than for a block of wood.
Oliver Twist, Vol. II (of 3) | Charles DickensDoes a real revolutionist need to prepare himself, to steel his nerves and harden his body?
Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist | Alexander BerkmanHe dismissed the nurses, therefore, and endeavoured to harden himself in advance to everything that could happen.
The Nabob | Alphonse DaudetYou see, my son, that the human frame has brittle bones—I will harden and yet supple them like steel.
Balsamo, The Magician | Alexander DumasReef-tackles were ready to pull earings down, but the breeze veered to the east north-east and did not harden.
Yachting Vol. 2 | Various.
British Dictionary definitions for harden (1 of 2)
/ (ˈhɑːdən) /
to make or become hard or harder; freeze, stiffen, or set
to make or become more hardy, tough, or unfeeling
to make or become stronger or firmer: they hardened defences
to make or become more resolute or set: hardened in his resolve
(intr) commerce
(of prices, a market, etc) to cease to fluctuate
(of price) to rise higher
- See also harden off, harden up
British Dictionary definitions for harden (2 of 2)
/ (ˈhɑːdən) /
a rough fabric made from hards
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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