adj., adv., & n.
--adj.
1. (of a substance, material, etc.) firm and solid; unyielding to pressure; not easily cut.
2 a difficult to understand or explain (a hard problem). b difficult to accomplish (a hard decision). c (foll. by to + infin.) not easy to (hard to believe; hard to please).
3 difficult to bear; entailing suffering (a hard life).
4 (of a person) unfeeling; severely critical.
5 (of a season or the weather) severe, harsh (a hard winter; a hard frost).
6 harsh or unpleasant to the senses (a hard voice; hard colours).
7 a strenuous, enthusiastic, intense (a hard worker; a hard fight). b severe, uncompromising (a hard blow; a hard bargain; hard words). c Polit. extreme; most radical (the hard right).
8 a (of liquor) strongly alcoholic. b (of drugs) potent and addictive. c (of radiation) highly penetrating. d (of pornography) highly suggestive and explicit.
9 (of water) containing mineral salts that make lathering difficult.
10 established; not disputable; reliable (hard facts; hard data).
11 Stock Exch. (of currency, prices, etc.) high; not likely to fall in value.
12 Phonet. (of a consonant) guttural (as c in cat, g in go).
--adv.
1. strenuously, intensely, copiously; with one's full effort (try hard; look hard at; is raining hard; hard-working).
2 with difficulty or effort (hard-earned).
3 so as to be hard or firm (hard-baked; the jelly set hard).
--n. Brit.
1. a sloping roadway across a foreshore.
2 sl. hard labour (got two years hard).
Phrases and idioms:
be hard on
1. be difficult for.
2 be severe in one's treatment or criticism of.
3 be unpleasant to (the senses). be hard put to it (usu. foll. by to + infin.) find it difficult. go hard with turn out to (a person's) disadvantage. hard and fast (of a rule or a distinction made) definite, unalterable, strict. hard at it colloq. busily working or occupied.
hard-boiled
1. (of an egg) boiled until the white and the yolk are solid.
2 (of a person) tough, shrewd. hard by near; close by.
a hard case
1. colloq. a an intractable person. b Austral. & NZ an amusing or eccentric person.
2 a case of hardship. hard cash negotiable coins and banknotes. hard coal anthracite. hard copy printed material produced by computer, usu. on paper, suitable for ordinary reading.
hard core
1. an irreducible nucleus.
2 colloq. a the most active or committed members of a society etc. b a conservative or reactionary minority.
3 Brit. solid material, esp. rubble, forming the foundation of a road etc. hard-core adj. blatant, uncompromising, esp.:
:
1. (of pornography) explicit, obscene.
2 (of drug addiction) relating to 'hard' drugs, esp. heroin. hard disk Computing a large-capacity rigid usu. magnetic storage disk. hard-done-by harshly or unfairly treated. hard error Computing a permanent error. hard feelings feelings of resentment.
hard hat colloq.
1. protective headgear worn on building-sites etc.
2 a reactionary person. hard hit badly affected. hard-hitting aggressively critical. hard labour heavy manual work as a punishment, esp. in a prison.
hard landing
1. a clumsy or rough landing of an aircraft.
2 an uncontrolled landing in which a spacecraft is destroyed. hard line unyielding adherence to a firm policy. hard-liner a person who adheres rigidly to a policy. hard lines Brit. colloq. hard luck. hard luck worse fortune than one deserves. hard-nosed colloq. realistic, uncompromising. hard nut sl. a tough, aggressive person.
a hard nut to crack colloq.
1. a difficult problem.
2 a person or thing not easily understood or influenced. hard of hearing somewhat deaf. hard on (or upon) close to in pursuit etc. hard-on n. coarse sl. an erection of the penis. hard pad a form of distemper in dogs etc. hard palate the front part of the palate. hard-paste denoting a Chinese or 'true' porcelain made of fusible and infusible materials (usu. clay and stone) and fired at a high temperature.
hard-pressed
1. closely pursued.
2 burdened with urgent business. hard rock colloq. rock music with a heavy beat. hard roe see ROE(1). hard sauce a sauce of butter and sugar, often with brandy etc. added. hard sell aggressive salesmanship or advertising. hard shoulder Brit. a hardened strip alongside a motorway for stopping on in an emergency. hard stuff sl. strong alcoholic drink, esp. whisky. hard tack a ship's biscuit.
hard up
1. short of money.
2 (foll. by for) at a loss for; lacking. hard-wearing able to stand much wear. hard wheat wheat with a hard grain rich in gluten. hard-wired involving or achieved by permanently connected circuits designed to perform a specific function. hard-working diligent. put the hard word on Austral. & NZ sl. ask a favour (esp. sexual or financial) of.
Derivatives:
hardish adj. hardness n.
Etymology: OE hard, heard f. Gmc