hardware
metalware typically used for repair or construction, as screws, locks, hinges, or machine parts:The store has aisles for hardware, lumber, electrical equipment, and plumbing supplies.
the mechanical equipment necessary for conducting an activity, usually distinguished from the theory and design that make the activity possible.
Computers. the mechanical, magnetic, electronic, and electrical devices comprising a computer system, as the CPU, disk drives, keyboard, or screen.: Compare software.
military weapons and combat equipment: The tactical concern with retreat was military hardware falling into enemy hands.
Slang. a weapon or weapons carried on one's person: The rougher types were asked to check their hardware at the door.
Slang.
medals or trophies: The Olympic athletes posed iconically with their new hardware fanned across their chests, or playfully pretended to bite their gold medals.
jewelry, especially large or flashy pieces of jewelry: She loved her engagement ring, but she took it off at work—a bakery is no place for hardware like that.
Origin of hardware
1Words Nearby hardware
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use hardware in a sentence
A Michigan-based company that supplies fasteners to the hardware store, home center, and industrial markets.
A plastic factory, a hardware supplier, and shipping–and-receiving giants like Fed-Ex and DHL are neighboring businesses.
House of the Witch: The Renegade Craft Brewers of Panama | Jeff Campagna | November 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWilliams sold hardware manufactured by a legitimate company, said Sargent, who took a 25 to 30 percent commission.
Patients Screwed in Spine Surgery ‘Scam’ | The Center for Investigative Reporting | November 3, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTNot only in terms of the politics on the ground, but in terms of material and hardware.
‘Homeland’ Creator Talks Season 4’s ‘Reboot,’ Life After Brody, and How ISIS Will Affect the Show | Marlow Stern | October 6, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAmiigo is a wrist and shoelace hardware combo, paired a smartphone app that crunches movement data in the cloud.
They did so, and Crane looked up at the fat hardware man with eyes that were not quite so contemptuous.
Scattergood Baines | Clarence Budington KellandScattergood Baines sat on the porch of his hardware store and looked down Coldriver Valley.
Scattergood Baines | Clarence Budington KellandHe went back to his hardware store and waited—waited for Crane and Keith to start their inevitable logging operations.
Scattergood Baines | Clarence Budington KellandIt cost him something like half a dollar an acre, and Landers considered he had robbed the hardware merchant of a machine.
Scattergood Baines | Clarence Budington KellandHe had simply gone along selling hardware in his own way—and selling a good deal of it.
Scattergood Baines | Clarence Budington Kelland
British Dictionary definitions for hardware
/ (ˈhɑːdˌwɛə) /
metal tools, implements, etc, esp cutlery or cooking utensils
computing the physical equipment used in a computer system, such as the central processing unit, peripheral devices, and memory: Compare software
mechanical equipment, components, etc
heavy military equipment, such as tanks and missiles or their parts
informal a gun or guns collectively
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
Scientific definitions for hardware
[ härd′wâr′ ]
A computer, its components, and its related equipment. Hardware includes disk drives, integrated circuits, display screens, cables, modems, speakers, and printers. Compare software.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for hardware
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Browse