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• hard hat
  hard hat

  noun

  a protective helmet of metal or plastic, especially as worn by construction or factory workers.
• hard-hat
  hard-hat

  noun

  a construction worker, especially a member of a construction workers' union.

hard hat

¹ American  

noun

hard hats plural

1. a protective helmet of metal or plastic, especially as worn by construction or factory workers.

2. a uniformed soldier of a regular army, as opposed to a guerrilla.

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hard-hat ² American  

[hahrd-hat] / ˈhɑrdˌhæt /

Or hardhat

noun

Informal.

1. a construction worker, especially a member of a construction workers' union.

2. a working-class conservative.

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adjective

1. pertaining to or characteristic of hard-hats.

   enlisting hard-hat support for his policies.

hard hat British  

noun

1. a hat made of a hard material for protection, worn esp by construction workers, equestrians, etc

2. informal a construction worker

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adjective

1. informal characteristic of the presumed conservative attitudes and prejudices typified by construction workers

hard hat Idioms  

1. A working-class ultraconservative. For example, They were counting on a large number of votes from the hard hats. This term alludes to the rigid protective headgear worn by construction workers, who were noted for their conservatism during the tumultuous 1960s. [c. 1960]

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hard hats
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hard hat¹

First recorded in 1925–30

Origin of hard-hat²

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hard hat hard-hat

I have been there on sweltering hot days, dressed from top to toe in nylon hi-vis, thick safety boots and a hot hard hat.

From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026

When opportunity shows up as a hard hat or a pair of overalls, we put them on and get to work.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026

On nearby benches, one person in scrubs and another in a reflective vest and hard hat ate their Tupperware lunches, like some kind of Village People reboot waiting to happen.

From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2025

He wore a hard hat as he led a group to the gaping, horseshoe-shaped mouth of the tunnel.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 27, 2025

The light from his hard hat lit up an astonishing scene.

From "Gregor the Overlander" by Suzanne Collins

With Wall Street worried artificial intelligence is coming for white-collar jobs, hard-hat and other “real economy” stocks are suddenly fashionable again.

From Barron's ● Feb. 13, 2026

While I could only envision the impending displays from a hard-hat tour and renderings, these spaces seem a welcome addition to the full story of Mount Vernon.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 7, 2026

“He has a hard-hat mentality, blue-collar guy. I just appreciate how he went about things and I just wanted to reward him.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 9, 2024

Lodge wore a hard-hat with a company logo and spoke of the need to open up mining on the seabed.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 5, 2023

He tightened the hard-hat straps, striding brusquely to the door.

From "Artemis Fowl" by Eoin Colfer

Related Words

• helmet