hard

[ hahrd ]

/ hɑrd /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: hard / harder / hardest / hards on Thesaurus.com

adjective, hard·er, hard·est.

not soft; solid and firm to the touch; unyielding to pressure and impenetrable or almost impenetrable.

firmly formed; tight: a hard knot.

difficult to do or accomplish; fatiguing; troublesome: a hard task.

difficult or troublesome with respect to an action, situation, person, etc.: hard to please; a hard time.

difficult to deal with, manage, control, overcome, or understand: a hard problem.

involving a great deal of effort, energy, or persistence: hard labor; hard study.

performing or carrying on work with great effort, energy, or persistence: a hard worker.

vigorous or violent in force; severe: a hard rain; a hard fall.

bad; unendurable; unbearable: hard luck.

oppressive; harsh; rough: hard treatment.

austere; severe: a hard winter; the hard times of the Great Depression.

harsh or severe in dealing with others: a hard master.

difficult to explain away; undeniable: hard facts.

that can be verified; factual, as distinguished from speculation or hearsay: hard information.

harsh or unfriendly; resentful; severe; bitter: hard feelings; hard words.

of stern judgment or close examination; searching: a hard look.

lacking delicacy or softness; not blurred or diffused; clear and distinct; sharp; harsh: a hard line; a hard, bright light; hard features; a hard face.

(of a photograph) contrasty.

severe or rigorous in terms: a hard bargain.

sternly realistic; dispassionate; unsentimental: a hard, practical man; a hard view of life.

incorrigible; disreputable; tough: a hard character.

Scot. and North England. stingy; mean: hard with money.

in coins or paper money as distinguished from checks, securities, promissory notes, or other negotiable instruments).

(of paper money or a monetary system) supported by sufficient gold reserves and easily convertible into the currency of a foreign nation.

(of money) scarce or available at high interest rates: a hard loan.

denoting assets with intrinsic value, as gold, silver, or diamonds.

(of alcoholic beverages)

containing more than 22.5 percent alcohol by volume, as whiskey and brandy as opposed to beer and wine.
strong because of fermentation; intoxicating: hard cider.

(of wine) tasting excessively of tannin.

(of an illicit narcotic or drug) known to be physically addictive, as opium, morphine, or cocaine.

(of water) containing mineral salts that interfere with the action of soap.

(of bread and baked goods)

having a firm, crisp crust or texture: hard rolls.
stale or tough.

(of a fabric) having relatively little nap; smooth: Silk is a harder fabric than wool or cotton.

(of the landing of a rocket or space vehicle) executed without decelerating: a hard landing on the moon.Compare soft (def. 28).

(of a missile base) equipped to launch missiles from underground silos.

(of a missile) capable of being launched from an underground silo.

Military. being underground and strongly protected from nuclear bombardment.

Agriculture. noting wheats with high gluten content, milled for a bread flour as contrasted with pastry flour.

Phonetics.

fortis.
(of c and g) pronounced as (k) in come and (g) in go, rather than as in cent, cello, suspicion, gem, or beige.
(of consonants in Slavic languages) not palatalized.Compare soft (def. 26).

(in the making of rope) noting a lay having a considerable angle to the axis of the rope; short.

Physics. (of a beam of particles or photons) having relatively high energy: hard x-rays.Compare soft (def. 29).

(of the penis) erect.

adverb, hard·er, hard·est.

with great exertion; with vigor or violence; strenuously: to work hard; to try hard.

earnestly, intently, or critically: to look hard at a thing.

harshly or severely.

so as to be solid, tight, or firm: frozen hard.

with strong force or impact: She tripped and came down hard on her back.

in a deeply affected manner; with genuine sorrow or remorse: She took it very hard when they told her of his death.

closely; immediately: Failure and defeat seemed hard at hand. The decision to ban students from the concerts followed hard on the heels of the riot.

to an unreasonable or extreme degree; excessively; immoderately: He's hitting the bottle pretty hard.

Nautical. closely, fully, or to the extreme limit: hard aport; hard alee.

noun

Nautical. a firm or paved beach or slope convenient for hauling vessels out of the water.

British.

a firm or solid beach or foreshore.
a firm landing, jetty, or road across or adjoining the foreshore.

British Slang. hard labor.

OTHER WORDS FOR hard

1 inflexible, rigid, compressed, compact, firm, resisting, adamantine, flinty.

3 toilsome, onerous, wearisome, exhausting.

5 complex, complicated, perplexing, puzzling, intricate, knotty, tough.

6 arduous, difficult, laborious.

8 stormy, tempestuous.

10 severe, rigorous, grinding, cruel, merciless, unsparing.

12 stern, austere, strict, exacting, relentless, obdurate, adamant; unyielding, unpitying.

13 incontrovertible.

See synonyms for hard on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR hard

1 soft.

3-6 easy.

See antonyms for hard on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ARE YOU A TRUE BLUE CHAMPION OF THESE "BLUE" SYNONYMS?

We could talk until we're blue in the face about this quiz on words for the color "blue," but we think you should take the quiz and find out if you're a whiz at these colorful terms.

Question 1 of 8

Which of the following words describes “sky blue”?

navy

beryl

azure

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Meet Grammar Coach

Write or paste your essay, email, or story into Grammar Coach and get grammar help

Improve Your Writing

Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing

Idioms about hard

be hard on, to deal harshly with; be stern: You are being too hard on him.

hard by, in close proximity to; near: The house is hard by the river.

hard of hearing. See entry at hard of hearing.

hard put, in great perplexity or difficulty; at a loss: We were hard put to finish the examination in one hour.

hard up, Informal.

urgently in need of money.
feeling a lack or need: The country is hard up for technicians and doctors.

Origin of hard

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English heard; cognate with Dutch hard, German hart, Old Norse harthr, Gothic hardus; akin to Homeric Greek kratýs “strong” and classical Greek krátos “strength” (see -cracy), from the Proto-Indo-European root kar-, ker- “hard”

synonym study for hard

1. See firm¹. 3. Hard, difficult both describe something resistant to one's efforts or one's endurance. Hard is the general word: hard times; It was hard to endure the severe weather. Difficult means not easy, and particularly denotes that which requires special effort or skill: a difficult task. 12. Hard, callous, unfeeling, unsympathetic imply a lack of interest in, feeling for, or sympathy with others. Hard implies insensibility, either natural or acquired, so that the plight of others makes no impression on one: a hard taskmaster. Callous may mean the same or that one is himself or herself insensitive to hurt as the result of continued repression and indifference: a callous answer; callous to criticism. Unfeeling implies natural inability to feel with and for others: an unfeeling and thoughtless remark. Unsympathetic implies an indifference that precludes pity, compassion, or the like: unsympathetic toward distress.

OTHER WORDS FROM hard

half-hard, adjectiveo·ver·hard, adjectiveo·ver·hard·ness, nounsem·i·hard, adjective

sem·i·hard·ness, noun

Words nearby hard

harborside, harbour, harbourage, harbour master, harbour seal, hard, hard act to follow, hard-and-fast, hardanger, hard as nails, hard-ass

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use hard in a sentence

It was hard to process and realize it was real and it happened.
Matthew Hoppe was a little-known American soccer player — until he reached the Bundesliga|Steven Goff|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
Just because something is hard to find, doesn’t mean it’s valuable, Keller says.
Replacing pieces of flatware or china can be a challenge. Here’s how to track them down.|Laura Daily|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
There will be hard days and recurring struggles, and you should give yourself space for them, she said.
Politics and conspiracy theories are fracturing relationships. Here’s how to grieve those broken bonds.|Jeff Schrum|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
An older cousin had once volunteered with Teen Line, and to Raderman that seemed like a good way to put her hard-won knowledge to use.
The loneliness of an interrupted adolescence|Ellen McCarthy|February 11, 2021|Washington Post

This makes it hard to know if you should buy a helmet with rotational-energy tech.
The Trek WaveCel Helmet Lawsuit, Explained|Joe Lindsey|February 10, 2021|Outside Online
Just the hard-on before you shoot unarmed members of the public.
'Babylon' Review: The Dumb Lives of Trigger-Happy Cops|Melissa Leon|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But so-called jungle primaries are notoriously hard to predict or poll.
The Golden State Preps for the ‘Red Wedding’ of Senate Races|David Freedlander|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
My body used for his hard pleasure; a stone god gripping me in his hands.
‘A Gronking to Remember’ Speed Read: 8 Naughtiest Bits|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
All of my stories are about people trying hard not to grow up.
Here’s the Lost Judd Apatow ‘Simpsons’ Episode, Penned by Judd Apatow|Asawin Suebsaeng|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
We also have a growing body of biological research showing that fathers, like mothers, are hard-wired to care for children.
How Good Dads Can Change the World|Gary Barker, PhD, Michael Kaufman|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
He thought they were now in touch with our troops at "X" but that they had been through some hard fighting to get there.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
However this be, it is hard to say that these fibs have that clear intention to deceive which constitutes a complete lie.
Children's Ways|James Sully
And it would be hard indeed, if so remote a prince's notions of virtue and vice were to be offered as a standard for all mankind.
Gulliver's Travels|Jonathan Swift
Even if poverty were gone, the flail could still beat hard enough upon the grain and chaff of humanity.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
"I congratulate you on your engagement," he said at last, looking up with a face that seemed to Bernard hard and unnatural.
Confidence|Henry James

British Dictionary definitions for hard

hard

/ (hɑːd) /

adjective

firm or rigid; not easily dented, crushed, or pierced

toughened by or as if by physical labour; not soft or smoothhard hands

difficult to do or accomplish; arduousa hard task

difficult to understand or perceivea hard question

showing or requiring considerable physical or mental energy, effort, or applicationhard work; a hard drinker

stern, cold, or intractablea hard judge

exacting; demandinga hard master

harsh; cruela hard fate

inflicting pain, sorrow, distress, or hardshiphard times

tough or adamanta hard man

forceful or violenta hard knock

cool or uncompromisingwe took a long hard look at our profit factor

indisputable; realhard facts

chem (of water) impairing the formation of a lather by soapSee hardness (def. 3)

practical, shrewd, or calculatinghe is a hard man in business

too harsh to be pleasanthard light

(of cash, money, etc) in coin and paper rather than cheques
(of currency) in strong demand, esp as a result of a good balance of payments situation
(of credit) difficult to obtain; tight

(of alcoholic drink) being a spirit rather than a wine, beer, etcthe hard stuff

(of a drug such as heroin, morphine, or cocaine) highly addictiveCompare soft (def. 20)

physics (of radiation, such as gamma rays and X-rays) having high energy and the ability to penetrate solids

physics (of a vacuum) almost complete

mainly US (of goods) durable

short for hard-coreSee hard core (def. 3), hard core (def. 4)

(of news coverage) concentrating on serious stories

phonetics

an older word for fortis
(not in modern technical usage) denoting the consonants c and g in English when they are pronounced as velar stops (k, g)
(of consonants in the Slavonic languages) not palatalized

being heavily fortified and protected
(of nuclear missiles) located underground in massively reinforced silos

politically extremethe hard left

British and NZ informal incorrigible or disreputable (esp in the phrase a hard case)

(of bread, etc) stale and old

a hard nut to crack

a person not easily persuaded or won over
a thing not easily understood

hard by near; close by

hard doer NZ a tough worker at anything

hard done by unfairly or badly treated

hard up informal

in need of money; poor
(foll by for) in great need (of)hard up for suggestions

put the hard word on Australian and NZ informal to ask or demand something from

adverb

with great energy, force, or vigourthe team always played hard

as far as possible; all the wayhard left

with application; earnestly or intentlyshe thought hard about the formula

with great intensity, force, or violencehis son's death hit him hard

(foll by on, upon, by, or after) close; nearhard on his heels

(foll by at) assiduously; devotedly

with effort or difficultytheir victory was hard won
(in combination)hard-earned

slowly and reluctantlyprejudice dies hard

go hard with to cause pain or difficulty to (someone)it will go hard with you if you don't tell the truth

hard at it working hard

hard put or hard put to it scarcely having the capacity (to do something)he's hard put to get to work by 9:30

noun

any colorant that produces a harsh coarse appearance

British a roadway across a foreshore

slang hard labour

slang an erection of the penis (esp in the phrase get or have a hard on)

Word Origin for hard

Old English heard; related to Old Norse harthr, Old Frisian herd, Old High German herti, Gothic hardus hard, Greek kratus strong

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with hard

hard

In addition to the idioms beginning with hard

hard act to follow
hard and fast
hard as nails
hard bargain
hard cash
harden one's heart
hard feelings
hard hat
hard hit, be
hard line
hard liquor
hard luck
hardly ever
hard nut to crack
hard of hearing
hard on
hard on someone's heels
hard pressed
hard put, be
hard row to hoe
hard sell
hard time
hard up
hard way, the

also see:

between a rock and a hard place
cold (hard) cash
come down (hard) on
die hard
drive a (hard) bargain
go hard with
no hard feelings
play hardball
play hard to get
school of hard knocks
tough (hard) row to hoe

hard

OTHER WORDS FOR hard

OPPOSITES FOR hard

Idioms about hard

Origin of hard

synonym study for hard

OTHER WORDS FROM hard

Words nearby hard

Words related to hard

How to use hard in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for hard

Word Origin for hard

Other Idioms and Phrases with hard