hard-handed

Or hard·hand·ed

[hahrd-han-did]

adjective

1. oppressive or tyrannical; stern or cruel.

2. having hands hardened by toil.

Other Word Forms

• hard-handedness noun
• hardhandedness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of hard-handed¹

First recorded in 1580–90

Example Sentences

He has promised to roll back bail reforms, restore police-agency immunity from civil rights lawsuits and appoint hard-handed judges.

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In her letter to Bennett informing him she was quitting, Zoabi, a legislator from the Meretz party, referenced an escalation in violence at a Jerusalem holy site as well as hard-handed tactics by Israeli police at the funeral last week of a Palestinian journalist.

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But defense attorney Shawn Merzlak argued the three were following their training, getting McGraw to agree that deputies were trained that a stun gun “is a device that should be used before hard-handed techniques because it is the device that is most likely to get compliance without serious injury to the suspect or the officer.”

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The union had issued a statement in June saying it did not support a vaccine mandate without a testing option, asserting that such a “hard-handed” approach would further frustrate health-care workers.

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The late-night gathering is just the latest incident of Sanders’ supporters using hard-handed tactics to push for their candidate.

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