hard science

American  

noun

1. any of the natural or physical sciences, as chemistry, biology, physics, or astronomy, in which aspects of the universe are investigated by means of hypotheses and experiments.

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hard science British  

noun

1. 1. one of the natural or physical sciences, such as physics, chemistry, biology, geology, or astronomy

   2. ( as modifier )

      a hard-science lecture

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Other Word Forms

• hard scientist
  noun

Etymology

Origin of hard science

First recorded in 1965–70

Compare meaning

How does hard-science compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• hard science vs. soft science

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hard science

How much hard science backs all of this?

From Barron's ● May 21, 2026

“It shows a lot of hard science at work that’s actually going to have an impact on the public and hopefully make people safer,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2024

None of this alone equates to hard science.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 8, 2023

“Archaeologists and physical anthropologists try hard to make their fields ‘real’ hard science, but the further back you go, the foggier the data gets,” said Peter Bullock, a retired chief archaeologist for the U.S.

From New York Times ● Jul. 1, 2023

That fault could properly be laid to Ernest Lawrence, who was still learning how to balance engineering and hard science.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik