Wiktionary

hard

See also: HARD, Hard, härd, and hård

English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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    From Middle English hard, from Old English heard, from Proto-West Germanic *hard(ī), from Proto-Germanic *harduz, from Proto-Indo-European *kort-ús, from *kret- (“strong, powerful”).

    Cognates

    Cognate with Yola hard (“hard”), West Frisian hurd (“hard”), Alemannic German hert (“hard”), Bavarian hoat (“hard”), Central Franconian haat (“hard”), Dutch hard (“hard”), German hart (“hard”), Luxembourgish haart (“hard”), Danish and Swedish hård (“hard”), Faroese and Icelandic harður (“hard”), Norwegian Bokmål hard (“hard”), Norwegian Nynorsk hard, hard’u (“hard”), Gothic 𐌷𐌰𐍂𐌳𐌿𐍃 (hardus, “hard”), Ancient Greek κρατύς (kratús, “strong, mighty”), Sanskrit क्रतु (krátu, “power, might, ability”), Avestan 𐬑𐬭𐬀𐬙𐬎 (xratu).

    Adjective

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    hard (comparative harder or more hard, superlative hardest or most hard)

    1. (of material or fluid) Solid and firm.
      1. Resistant to pressure; difficult to break, cut, or penetrate.
        Synonyms: resistant, solid, stony; see also Thesaurus:hard
        Antonym: soft
        This bread is so stale and hard, I can barely cut it.
      2. (of drink or drugs) Strong.
        Synonym: strong
        Antonym: low-alcohol
      3. (of a normally nonalcoholic drink) Containing alcohol.
        Antonyms: alcohol-free, soft, non-alcoholic
        hard cider, hard lemonade, hard seltzer, hard soda
        • 2023 March 1, Rachel Ellison, “Bad Dates Turn Out to Be Excellent on TikTok”, in The New York Times‎[1], archived from the original on 2 March 2023:
          Stunned, she deleted his number and went home. Then she cracked a hard seltzer, opened her phone’s camera and filmed a TikTok video recounting the evening  […].
      4. (wine) Very acidic or tannic.
        • 2002, Robert M. Parker (Jr.), Pierre-Antoine Rovani, Parker's Wine Buyer's Guide (page 175)
          While most 1974s remain hard, tannic, hollow wines lacking ripeness, flesh, and character, a number of the Graves estates did produce surprisingly spicy, interesting wines.
      5. (of water) High in dissolved chemical salts, especially those of calcium.
      6. (physics, of a ferromagnetic material) Having the capability of being a permanent magnet by being a material with high magnetic coercivity (compare soft).
      7. (physics, of electromagnetic radiation) Having a high energy (high frequency; short wavelength).
        hard X-rays
      8. (photography, of light) Made up of parallel rays, producing clearly defined shadows.
    2. (personal or social) Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
      1. Difficult or requiring a lot of effort to do, understand, experience, or deal with.
        Synonyms: confusing, difficult, puzzling, tough, tricky; see also Thesaurus:difficult
        Antonyms: easy, simple, straightforward, trite
        a hard problem;  a hard question;  a hard topic
        • 1988, Edmund White, An Oracle:
          Ray found it hard to imagine having accumulated so many mannerisms before the dawn of sex, of the sexual need to please, of the staginess sex encourages or the tightly capped wells of poisoned sexual desire the disappointed must stand guard over.
        • 1999 January 21, Alan Bennett, “What I did in 1998”, in London Review of Books, volume 21, number 2:
          The stone circle is small and hard to find and the search is made harder because all down the beck cars are parked on the verge and the supposedly unfrequented road up the valley very busy.
        • 2013 July 26, Nick Miroff, “Mexico gets a taste for eating insects …”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 7, page 32:
          The San Juan market is Mexico City's most famous deli of exotic meats, where an adventurous shopper can hunt down hard-to-find critters such as ostrich, wild boar and crocodile.
        • 2016 January 2, James Romm, “Beginning Greek, Again and Again”, in The New York Times‎[2], archived from the original on 8 November 2020:
          It’s been said that, for nonstellar teachers at least, the hardest things to teach are the things one loves most.
      2. Demanding a lot of effort to endure.
        Synonyms: difficult, intolerable, tough, unbearable
        Antonyms: bearable, easy
        a hard life
      4. Severe, harsh, unfriendly, brutal.
        Synonyms: harsh, hostile, severe, strict, tough, unfriendly; see also Thesaurus:stern
        a hard master;  a hard heart;  hard words;  a hard character
        The senator asked the party chief to put the hard word on his potential rivals.
      5. (dated) Difficult to resist or control; powerful.
      6. (military) Hardened; having unusually strong defences.
        a hard site
      7. (slang) Tough, muscular, badass.
        He thinks he's well hard.
        • 2006, Noire [pseudonym], Thug-A-Licious: An Urban Erotic Tale, New York, N.Y.: One World, Ballantine Books, →ISBN, page 108:
          I was a hard niggah, but not twisted enough to eat and socialize with my peeps knowing I was planning on robbing them before the night was over.
      8. (slang) Excellent, impressive.
        This song goes hard.
        This guy always has the hardest fits.
    3. Unquestionable; unequivocal.
      Synonyms: incontrovertible, indubitable, unambiguous, unequivocal, unquestionable
      hard evidence;  a hard requirement
      • 1796, The History of the Trial of Warren Hastings‎[3]:
        […] for, unless supported by hard facts, abusive words would recoil on him who used them, and would pass like empty air over the head of an innocent man.
      • 1962, The Selling Power of a Woman‎[4]:
        Here are a few techniques to turn a hard "no" into an easy "yes"!
      • 2011 December 19, Kerry Brown, “Kim Jong-il obituary”, in The Guardian:
        Unsurprisingly for a man who went into mourning for three years after the death in 1994 of his own father, the legendary leader Kim Il-sung, and who in the first 30 years of his political career made no public statements, even to his own people, Kim's career is riddled with claims, counter claims, speculation, and contradiction. There are few hard facts about his birth and early years.
    4. (of a road intersection) Having a comparatively larger or a ninety-degree angle.
      At the intersection, there are two roads going to the left. Take the hard left.
    5. (slang, vulgar) Sexually aroused; having an erect penis.
      Antonyms: soft, flaccid
      I got so hard watching two hot girls wrestle each other on the beach.
    6. (bodybuilding) Having muscles that are tightened as a result of intense, regular exercise.
    7. (phonetics, not comparable) Fortis.
      Antonym: soft
      1. Plosive.
        There is a hard c in "clock" and a soft c in "centre".
      2. Unvoiced.
        Hard k, t, s, ch, as distinguished from soft, g, d, z, j.
    8. (Slavic phonology) Velarized or plain, rather than palatalized.
      The letter ж (ž) in Russian is always hard.
    9. (art) Having a severe property; presenting a barrier to enjoyment.
      1. Rigid in the drawing or distribution of the figures; formal; lacking grace of composition.
      2. Having disagreeable and abrupt contrasts in colour or shading.
    10. (not comparable)
      1. In a physical form, not digital.
        a soft or hard copy; a digital or hard archive
      2. Using a manual or physical process, not by means of a software command.
        a hard reboot or reset
    11. (politics) Far, extreme.
      hard right, hard left
    12. Of silk: not having had the natural gum boiled off.
    13. (finance) Of a market: having more demand than supply; being a seller's market.
      Antonym: soft
      • 2009, J. David Cummins, Olivier Mahul, Catastrophe Risk Financing in Developing Countries, page 7:
        Undercapitalized insurers cannot retain more catastrophe risks when the market is hard […]
    14. (pornography) Hardcore.
    Derived terms
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    Descendants
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    • Tok Pisin: hat
    • → Finnish: haarti
    • → Spanish: hard
    Translations
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    The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
    Translations to be checked

    Adverb

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    hard (comparative harder, superlative hardest)

    1. (manner) With much force or effort.
      He hit the puck hard up the ice.
      They worked hard all week.
      The recession hit them especially hard.
      Think hard about your choices.
      The couple were fucking each other hard.
      • 1595, Edmunde Spenser [i.e., Edmund Spenser], “[Amoretti.] Sonnet VI”, in Amoretti and Epithalamion. […], London: […] [Peter Short] for William Ponsonby, →OCLC, signature A4, verso:
        Be nought diſmayd that her vnmoued mind, / doth ſtill perſiſt in her rebellious pride: / ſuch loue not lyke to luſts of baſer kynd, / the harder vvonne, the firmer vvill abide.
      • 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene i]:
        […] My father / Is hard at study. Pray now, rest yourself; […]
      • 1700, [John] Dryden, “The Wife of Bath's Tale”, in Fables Ancient and Modern; […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC:
        prayed so hard for mercy from the prince
      • 1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 164:
        I played hard, I drank hard, I rode hard, and did everything much on the same pattern.
      • 1985, Michael A. Arbib, In search of the person: philosophical explorations in cognitive science, page 119:
        What, then, of the voluntarist's sense that one often has to think long and hard before making agonizing choices?
    2. (manner) With difficulty.
      His degree was hard earned.
    3. (obsolete) So as to raise difficulties.
    4. (manner) Compactly.
      The lake had finally frozen hard.
    5. (now archaic) Near, close.
      At the intersection, bear hard left.
    Derived terms
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    Translations
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    Noun

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    hard (countable and uncountable, plural hards)

    1. (countable, nautical) A firm or paved beach or slope convenient for hauling vessels out of the water.
      • 1952, Edward John Barrington Douglas-Scott-Montagu Baron Montagu, Beaulieu, the Abbey, Palace House, and Buckler's Hard, page 36:
        The Monastery's ironworks at Sowley were renowned for centuries but declined with the passing of the 'wooden walls' at Buckler's Hard — a great number of these ships having been built with timber from the Beaulieu Woods […]
      • 1967, John Christopher, The White Mountains:
        He brought the dinghy up to the careening hard. Two or three boats lay on their sides on the sloping roadway, but there was no sign of life.
    2. (countable, motor racing) A tyre whose compound is softer than superhards, and harder than mediums.
    3. (uncountable, drugs, slang) Crack cocaine.
    4. (uncountable, slang) Hard labor.
      The prisoners were sentenced to three years' hard.
    Derived terms
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    Etymology 2

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      From Middle English harden, herden, from Old English heardian (“to become hard”) and hierdan (“to make hard”), from Proto-West Germanic *hardēn and *hardijan, from Proto-Germanic *hardijaną.

      Cognates

      Cognate with Dutch harden (“to harden”), German härten (“to harden”), Danish hærde (“to harden; to temper”), Icelandic herða (“to harden”), Norwegian Bokmål herde (“to harden; to toughen”), Norwegian Nynorsk herda (“to make hard, temper; harden”), Swedish härda (“harden, temper”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌷𐌰𐍂𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (gahardjan), *𐌷𐌰𐍂𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (*hardjan, “to harden”).

      Verb

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      hard (third-person singular simple present hards, present participle harding, simple past and past participle harded)

      1. (transitive, obsolete) To make hard, harden.
        • 1641, original 1618, Guillaume de Saluste Du Bartas, Josuah Sylvester, Du Bartas His Diuine Weekes and Workes:
          He knows vain men: he sees their harts that hard them In Guiles and Wiles, and will not hee regard them?

      Anagrams

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      Dutch

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      Pronunciation

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      Etymology 1

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      From Middle Dutch hart, from Old Dutch hart, from Proto-West Germanic *hard(ī), from Proto-Germanic *harduz.

      Adjective

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      hard (comparative harder, superlative hardst)

      1. hard, strong
        Antonym: zacht
      2. (economics, of a currency) strong, not easily devalued
      3. unquestionable, uncontestable
        harde feiten
        hard facts
      4. heartless, unsympathetic (of a person)
        Antonym: zacht
      5. hard, difficult
        een harde strijd
        a difficult fight
      6. harsh, heavy
        harde straffen
        harsh punishments
        een harde regen
        heavy rain
      7. hard, rich in calcium (of water)
        Antonym: zacht
      8. loud (of sound)
        Synonym: luid
        Antonym: zacht
      9. fast
        Synonym: snel
        Antonyms: langzaam, traag
        hard fietsen
        cycle fast
        hard rijden
        drive fast
        hard werken
        work hard
        hard lopen
        walk fast
      Declension
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      Declension of hard
      uninflected hard
      inflected harde
      comparative harder
      positive comparative superlative
      predicative/adverbial hard harder het hardst
      het hardste
      indefinite m./f. sing. harde hardere hardste
      n. sing. hard harder hardste
      plural harde hardere hardste
      definite harde hardere hardste
      partitive hards harders —
      Derived terms
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      Descendants
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      Etymology 2

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      (This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

      Adverb

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      hard

      1. (speed) fast, swiftly
        Ik heb een bekeuring gekregen omdat ik te hard heb gereden.
        I got a ticket because I drove too fast.
      2. very
      3. loudly

      Etymology 3

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      See the etymology of the corresponding lemma form.

      Verb

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      hard

      1. inflection of harden:
        1. first-person singular present indicative
        2. (in case of inversion) second-person singular present indicative
        3. imperative

      French

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      Etymology

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        Borrowed from English hard.

        Pronunciation

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        Adjective

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        hard (plural hards)

        1. (of pornography) hardcore
          Des photos hards.
          Hardcore pictures.

        Noun

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        hard m (plural hards)

        1. hardcore pornography
          Le Journal du hard est une émission de Canal + dédiée au cinéma pornographique.
          Le Journal du hard ("Hard Porn News") is a broadcast by Canal+ dedicated to pornographic films.
        2. hard rock
          Elle adore le hard et le headbang.
          She just loves hard rock and headbanging.
          • 2004, Thomas Mansier, Identité du rock et presse spécialisée. Évolution d'une culture et de son discours critique dans les magazines français des années 90, page 98:
            Le hard semble ainsi capable de remplir le contrat originel du rock.
            As such, hard rock seems capable of fulfilling the original purpose of rock.
          • 2014, Christian Eudeline, "Uriah Heep. Look At Yourself", in Du hard rock au métal. Les 100 albums cultes, Gründ (publ.).
            Au croisement du hard et du prog, Uriah Heep […] enregistre là son meilleur disque, pourtant, leurs paroles pseudo-lyriques et leurs envolées déplaisaient.
            At the crossroads of hard rock and prog rock, Uriah Heep […] records its best disc there; however, their pseudo-lyrical texts and their take-offs were disliked.

        Irish

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        Pronunciation

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        Adjective

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        hard

        1. h-prothesized form of ard

        Middle English

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        Alternative forms

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        Etymology

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          From Old English heard, from Proto-West Germanic *hard(ī), from Proto-Germanic *harduz.

          Pronunciation

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          Adjective

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          hard

          1. hard

          Descendants

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          References

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          Norwegian Bokmål

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          Alternative forms

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          Etymology

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          From dialectal Norwegian, from Old Norse harðr, from Proto-Germanic *harduz.

          Pronunciation

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          Adjective

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          hard (indefinite neuter hardt, plural and definite singular harde, comparative hardere, indefinite superlative hardest, definite superlative hardeste)

          1. hard (not soft)
          2. hard, stern, severe, hardy

          Derived terms

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          References

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          Norwegian Nynorsk

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          Etymology

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          From Old Norse harðr, from Proto-Germanic *harduz.

          Pronunciation

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          Adjective

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          hard (neuter hardt, definite singular and plural harde, comparative hardare, indefinite superlative hardast, definite superlative hardaste)

          1. hard
          2. hard, stern, severe
          3. hardy

          Derived terms

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          References

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          Old Saxon

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          Etymology

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          From Proto-West Germanic *hard(ī).

          Adjective

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          hard (comparative hardiro, superlative hardist)

          1. hard

          Declension

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          Positive forms of hard
          Strong declension
          singular plural
          masculine feminine neuter masculine feminine neuter
          nominative hard hard hard harde, harda harda hard, harda
          accusative hardan, harden harda hard harda, harde harda hard, harda
          genitive hardes, hardas hardara, hardaro hardes, hardas hardaro, hardoro, hardero hardaro, hardoro, hardero hardaro, hardoro, hardero
          dative hardumu, hardum, hardun, hardun, hardon, harden, hardan hardaro, hardaru, hardara hardumu, hardum, hardun, hardun, hardon, harden, hardan hardun, hardon, hardum hardun, hardon hardun, hardon, hardum
          Weak declension
          singular plural
          masculine feminine neuter masculine feminine neuter
          nominative hardo, harda harda, harde harda, harde hardon, hardun hardon, hardun, hardan hardon, hardun
          accusative hardon, hardan hardun, hardon, hardan harda, harde hardon, hardun hardon, hardun, hardan hardon, hardun
          genitive harden, hardan hardun, hardan, harden harden, hardan hardono, hardeno hardono hardono, hardeno
          dative hardon, harden, hardan hardun, hardan hardon, harden, hardan hardon, hardun hardon, hardun hardon, hardun
          Comparative forms of hard (weak only)
          Weak declension
          singular plural
          masculine feminine neuter masculine feminine neuter
          nominative hardiro, hardira hardira, hardire hardira, hardire hardiron, hardirun hardiron, hardirun, hardiran hardiron, hardirun
          accusative hardiron, hardiran hardirun, hardiron, hardiran hardira, hardire hardiron, hardirun hardiron, hardirun, hardiran hardiron, hardirun
          genitive hardiren, hardiran hardirun, hardiran, hardiren hardiren, hardiran hardirono, hardireno hardirono hardirono, hardireno
          dative hardiron, hardiren, hardiran hardirun, hardiran hardiron, hardiren, hardiran hardiron, hardirun hardiron, hardirun hardiron, hardirun
          Superlative forms of hard
          Strong declension
          singular plural
          masculine feminine neuter masculine feminine neuter
          nominative hardist hardist hardist hardiste, hardista hardista hardist, hardista
          accusative hardistan, hardisten hardista hardist hardista, hardiste hardista hardist, hardista
          genitive hardistes, hardistas hardistara, hardistaro hardistes, hardistas hardistaro, hardistoro, hardistero hardistaro, hardistoro, hardistero hardistaro, hardistoro, hardistero
          dative hardistumu, hardistum, hardistun, hardistun, hardiston, hardisten, hardistan hardistaro, hardistaru, hardistara hardistumu, hardistum, hardistun, hardistun, hardiston, hardisten, hardistan hardistun, hardiston, hardistum hardistun, hardiston hardistun, hardiston, hardistum
          Weak declension
          singular plural
          masculine feminine neuter masculine feminine neuter
          nominative hardisto, hardista hardista, hardiste hardista, hardiste hardiston, hardistun hardiston, hardistun, hardistan hardiston, hardistun
          accusative hardiston, hardistan hardistun, hardiston, hardistan hardista, hardiste hardiston, hardistun hardiston, hardistun, hardistan hardiston, hardistun
          genitive hardisten, hardistan hardistun, hardistan, hardisten hardisten, hardistan hardistono, hardisteno hardistono hardistono, hardisteno
          dative hardiston, hardisten, hardistan hardistun, hardistan hardiston, hardisten, hardistan hardiston, hardistun hardiston, hardistun hardiston, hardistun

          Derived terms

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          Descendants

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          Spanish

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          Etymology

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          Borrowed from English hard.

          Adjective

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          hard (invariable)

          1. hard, heavy, hardcore

          Yola

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          Etymology

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          From Middle English hard, from Old English heard, from Proto-West Germanic *hard(ī).

          Pronunciation

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          Adjective

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          hard

          1. hard
            • 1867, “A YOLA ZONG”, in SONGS, ETC. IN THE DIALECT OF FORTH AND BARGY, number 11, page 88:
              W' vengem too hard, he zunk ee commane,
              With venom too hard, he sunk his bat-club,

          Derived terms

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          References

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          • Jacob Poole (d. 1827) (before 1828), William Barnes, editor, A Glossary, With some Pieces of Verse, of the old Dialect of the English Colony in the Baronies of Forth and Bargy, County of Wexford, Ireland, London: J. Russell Smith, published 1867, page 88
          Retrieved from "https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=hard&oldid=90840977"