hard stuff
Americannoun
-
strongly addictive drugs.
-
liquor with a high alcoholic content; hard liquor.
Etymology
Origin of hard stuff
First recorded in 1950–55
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.
This leaves me optimistic... it shows us that we can still do this stuff, the really hard stuff.
From Barron's • Mar. 31, 2026
They’ve gone through so much together, she says, it’s “easy to get to the hard stuff really quick.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026
Most of all, they needed to understand why we do all this hard stuff, and how to get through it — so I put together “My Mother’s Money: A Guide to Financial Caregiving.”
From MarketWatch • Nov. 4, 2025
Any time you ever get better, you only grow through the hard stuff.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2025
I need the hard stuff, like Jacques Torres or one of those giant double-chocolate-chip Levain Bakery cookies.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
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.
