harden

[ hahr-dn ]

/ ˈhɑr dn /

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See synonyms for harden on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to make hard or harder: to harden steel.

to make pitiless or unfeeling:to harden one's heart.

to make rigid or unyielding; stiffen: The rigors of poverty hardened his personality.

to strengthen or confirm, especially with reference to character, intentions, feelings, etc.; reinforce.

to make hardy, robust, or capable of endurance; toughen.

Military. to reinforce the structure of (a military or strategic installation) to protect it from nuclear bombardment.

verb (used without object)

to become hard or harder.

to become pitiless or unfeeling.

to become rigid or unyielding; stiffen: His personality hardened over the years.

to become confirmed or strengthened: His resistance hardened.

to become inured or toughened: The troops hardened under constant fire.

Commerce. (of a market, prices, etc.)

to cease to fluctuate; firm: When the speculators withdrew from the market, the prices hardened.
to rise higher.

OTHER WORDS FOR harden

1 solidify, indurate; petrify, ossify.

4 fortify, steel, brace, nerve.

See synonyms for harden on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR harden

1 soften.

4 weaken.

See antonyms for harden on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of harden

Middle English word dating back to 1150–1200; see origin at hard, -en¹

OTHER WORDS FROM harden

hard·en·a·ble, adjectivehard·en·a·bil·i·ty, nouno·ver·hard·en, verbpre·hard·en, verb (used with object)

re·hard·en, verbun·hard·en, verb (used with object)un·hard·en·a·ble, adjective

Words nearby harden

hard drive, hard drug, Hardecanute, hard-edge, hard-edged, harden, Hardenberg, hardenbergia, Hardenburg, hardened, hardener

Other definitions for harden (2 of 2)

Harden

[ hahr-dn ]

/ ˈhɑr dn /

noun

Sir Arthur, 1865–1940, English biochemist: Nobel Prize 1929.

How to use harden in a sentence

A lot of publishers are emerging leaner and battle-hardened from the worst of the coronavirus.
‘We’re about hiring journalists’: Insider Inc. launches third global news hub in Singapore|Lucinda Southern|September 17, 2020|Digiday
These included battle-hardened forces from Misurata, Bashagha’s home city, which is a political and military power in its own right.
Can Libya’s Fragile Peace Survive Fresh Cracks?|Charu Kasturi|September 15, 2020|Ozy
Like Westbrook, Harden is also 31, though his game relies far less on his athleticism.
Everything Should Be On The Table For The Houston Rockets. Even James Harden’s Future.|Chris Herring (chris.herring@fivethirtyeight.com)|September 14, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
Westbrook, Harden and Gordon are, in their purest form, head-down drivers who love attacking the basket, while the latter two plus Covington and Tucker can’t be left alone behind the arc.
The Rockets’ New Starting Lineup Is Just Scratching The Surface Of Its Potential|Michael Pina|September 8, 2020|FiveThirtyEight

The beetle can also breathe underwater via air pockets tucked under its hardened wings.
Some beetles can be eaten by a frog, then walk out the other end|Jonathan Lambert|September 4, 2020|Science News For Students
How great would it be if Michaela Watkins or Marcia Gay Harden was nominated for the canceled Trophy Wife?
Emmys 2014: Who Will and Who Should Be Nominated|Kevin Fallon|July 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Harden and former SNL star Michaela Watkins mine nuanced brilliance out of what could easily be ex-wife clichés.
These 5 ‘On the Bubble’ TV Shows Shouldn’t Be Canceled|Kevin Fallon|April 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the meantime, expect attitudes to harden—and the country to remain at impasse.
Grenade Attack Hits Downtown Bangkok|Lennox Samuels|January 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The show really jumps back and forth through time this season, flashing back to the arbitration scenes with Marcia Gay Harden.
Jeff Daniels on the Most Explosive Episode of ‘The Newsroom’ Yet|Marlow Stern|August 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Fallon: This cast is so stacked with talent—Whitford, Harden, Watkins—that I expected Akerman to drown here.
Fall-Winter TV Preview: Snap Judgments of 2013–14’s New Shows|Jace Lacob, Kevin Fallon|July 16, 2013|DAILY BEAST
As soon as the boy begins to harden, shell care no more for him than for a block of wood.
Oliver Twist, Vol. II (of 3)|Charles Dickens
Does a real revolutionist need to prepare himself, to steel his nerves and harden his body?
Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist|Alexander Berkman
He dismissed the nurses, therefore, and endeavoured to harden himself in advance to everything that could happen.
The Nabob|Alphonse Daudet
You see, my son, that the human frame has brittle bones—I will harden and yet supple them like steel.
Balsamo, The Magician|Alexander Dumas
Reef-tackles were ready to pull earings down, but the breeze veered to the east north-east and did not harden.
Yachting Vol. 2|Various.

British Dictionary definitions for harden (1 of 2)

harden¹

/ (ˈhɑːdən) /

verb

to make or become hard or harder; freeze, stiffen, or set

to make or become more hardy, tough, or unfeeling

to make or become stronger or firmerthey hardened defences

to make or become more resolute or sethardened in his resolve

(intr) commerce

(of prices, a market, etc) to cease to fluctuate
(of price) to rise higher

British Dictionary definitions for harden (2 of 2)

harden²