hard-set
Americanadjective
-
firmly or rigidly set; fixed.
a hard-set smile.
-
in a difficult position.
The troops were hard-set before their supplies came.
-
determined; obstinate.
Etymology
Origin of hard-set
1400–50; late Middle English harde set
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“If a guy is responding really, really well, we owe it to them and to ourselves to respond with them. And if he’s not, then maybe we have to pull back. But I know there’s not hard-set numbers on any of them.”
From Washington Post
His mouth was hard-set, the skin between his brows pinched hard.
From Literature
Koffi’s mouth formed a hard-set line.
From Literature
There was a surprising touch of sympathy in her voice that contradicted her stern, dark eyes and hard-set mouth.
From Literature
Koffi's lips pressed into a hard-set line.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
