Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

hardy1

[hahr-dee]
See more synonyms for hardy on Thesaurus.com
adjective, har·di·er, har·di·est.
  1. capable of enduring fatigue, hardship, exposure, etc.; sturdy; strong: hardy explorers of northern Canada.
  2. (of plants) able to withstand the cold of winter in the open air.
  3. requiring great physical courage, vigor, or endurance: the hardiest sports.
  4. bold or daring; courageous: hardy soldiers.
  5. unduly bold; presumptuous; foolhardy.
Show More

Origin of hardy1

1175–1225; Middle English hardi < Old French, past participle of *hardir to harden, make brave < Germanic; compare Gothic -hardjan, Old High German hartjan to harden
Can be confusedhardy hearty

Synonyms

See more synonyms for hardy on Thesaurus.com
1. vigorous, robust, hale, stout, sound. 4. intrepid, resolute, brave.

Antonyms

1. weak. 4. timid.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for hardier

Historical Examples

  • All which was for the sake of the commonwealth, that his body might be the hardier for the war.

    The Boys' and Girls' Plutarch

    Plutarch

  • In this stage, however, man was a hardier creature than he afterwards became.

  • “I certainly think that some of us are hardier for transplanting,” he replied.

    The Gold Trail

    Harold Bindloss

  • It is somewhat earlier, and also hardier, than the Yellow Malta.

  • It is later and hardier than the Yellow Savoys, before described.

British Dictionary definitions for hardier

hardy1

adjective -dier or -diest
  1. having or demanding a tough constitution; robust
  2. bold; courageous
  3. foolhardy; rash
  4. (of plants) able to live out of doors throughout the winter
Show More

Word Origin

C13: from Old French hardi bold, past participle of hardir to become bold, of Germanic origin; compare Old English hierdan to harden 1, Old Norse hertha, Old High German herten

hardy2

noun plural -dies
  1. any blacksmith's tool made with a square shank so that it can be lodged in a square hole in an anvil
Show More

Word Origin

C19: probably from hard

Hardy

noun
  1. Oliver. See Laurel and Hardy
  2. Thomas. 1840–1928, British novelist and poet. Most of his novels are set in his native Dorset (part of his fictional Wessex) and include Far from the Madding Crowd (1874), The Return of the Native (1878), The Mayor of Casterbridge (1886), Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1891), and Jude the Obscure (1895), after which his work consisted chiefly of verse
  3. Sir Thomas Masterman. 1769–1839, British naval officer, flag captain under Nelson (1799–1805): 1st Sea Lord (1830)
Show More
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for hardier

hardy

adj.

c.1200, "bold, daring, fearless," from Old French hardi, from past participle of hardir "to harden, be or make bold," from Frankish *hardjan, from Proto-Germanic *hardjan "to make hard" (cf. Old Frisian herda, Old High German herten, Old Norse herða, Gothic gahardjan "make hard;" see hard). Sense influenced by English hard. Related: Hardily; hardiness. Hardhede "physical hardiness" is attested from early 15c.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper