hardness

American  

[hahrd-nis] / ˈhɑrd nɪs /

noun

hardnesses plural

1. the state or quality of being hard.

   the hardness of ice.

2. a relative degree or extent of this quality.

   wood of a desirable hardness.

3. that quality in water that is imparted by the presence of dissolved salts, especially calcium sulfate or bicarbonate.

4. unfeelingness or jadedness; callousness.

5. harshness or austerity, as of a difficult existence.

6. South Midland U.S. ill will; bad feelings.

   There's a lot of hardness between those two boys.

7. Mineralogy. the comparative ability of a substance to scratch or be scratched by another.

8. Metallurgy. the measured resistance of a metal to indention, abrasion, deformation, or machining.

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hardness British  

/ ˈhɑːdnɪs /

noun

1. the quality or condition of being hard

2. one of several measures of resistance to indentation, deformation, or abrasion See Mohs scale Brinell hardness number

3. the quality of water that causes it to impair the lathering of soap: caused by the presence of certain calcium salts. Temporary hardness can be removed by boiling whereas permanent hardness cannot

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hardness Scientific  

/ härd′nĭs /

1. A measure of how easily a mineral can be scratched. Hardness is measured on the Mohs scale.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• hardnesses
  plural

Etymology

Origin of hardness

First recorded before 900; Middle English hardnes, Old English heardnes; see hard, -ness

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

hardness hardnesses

It is a pas de deux of contrasts—roughness and polish, hardness and softness, danger and safety.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026

The experiments showed that this additive manufacturing strategy can preserve the hardness and mechanical strength typically achieved through conventional manufacturing methods.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 13, 2026

The laser-leading method also struggled to maintain the hardness required for success.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 13, 2026

“Each and every day I have to ask God to lift the hardness in my heart, because I‘m angry,” Lewis said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2025

The heat and the dirt were bad, he said, and there was an added hardness to his life brought on by his weeks of “improper absence,” but Eb accepted it with humility.

From "Across Five Aprils" by Irene Hunt

Mineral lattices have important implications for mineral properties, as exemplified by the relative hardnesses of diamond and graphite.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

Nevertheless the excitement of it had thrilled and broken up the hardnesses of her own nature.

From Sir George Tressady — Volume II by Ward, Humphry, Mrs.

The hardnesses of line, gesture, and feature in the German example, though two centuries at least later, are, I think, equally notable.

From Modern Painters, Volume IV (of V) by Ruskin, John

The minute it crops up, all our hardnesses yield, all our irritations and resentments flit away, and a sunny spirit takes their place.

From Essays on Paul Bourget by Twain, Mark

Her patient, gentle, tender care had impressed him with reverence; he was magnetized by her sphere of unselfishness, forgiveness and goodness, and some of the hardnesses of his own nature were melted away.

From Fairy Fingers A Novel by Ritchie, Anna Cora Ogden Mowatt

Related Words

• firmness