hardening
Americannoun
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a material that hardens another, as an alloy added to iron to make steel.
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the process of becoming hard or rigid.
noun
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the act or process of becoming or making hard
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a substance added to another substance or material to make it harder
Etymology
Origin of hardening
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.
Carlos Fernández de Cossío, Cuba’s deputy foreign minister, said that while the country hopes to avert conflict, it is hardening its defenses.
From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026
Some Angelenos, like David Lefkowith, president of the Mandeville Canyon Assn., hope it will be more accepting of fire-resistant native species and emphasize less expensive home hardening measures.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 25, 2026
Public sentiment is hardening, with a recent Quinnipiac University poll finding 65 percent of Americans oppose having a data center built in their community.
From Barron's • Apr. 24, 2026
Some say they are turned off not only by the U.S.’s hardening immigration enforcement, but also by its faulty infrastructure, gun violence and living costs.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 19, 2026
More of those tiny creatures kept joining the fight, and now a glowing sludge was thickening and hardening around the propellers.
From "The Wild Robot Protects" by Peter Brown
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.
