hard
A1Neutral (used across all registers from informal to formal)
Definition
Meaning
Firm, solid, and resistant to pressure; requiring considerable physical or mental effort; difficult to accomplish, understand, or endure.
Can refer to severity (a hard winter), intensity (hard work), lack of compassion (a hard heart), factual reality (hard evidence), difficulty in comprehension (a hard problem), or substance-related (hard drugs/alcohol).
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
The adjective's primary meaning relates to physical resistance. The metaphorical extensions to 'difficult' and 'intense' are central to most usage. The adverb form is identical to the adjective, unlike many -ly adverbs.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Minor differences. BrE uses 'hard' adverbially more freely (e.g., 'to try hard'). AmE may slightly prefer 'to work hard' over 'to work hardly' (which means 'scarcely'). 'Hard of hearing' is equally common. Spelling in compounds: BrE often uses hyphen (hard-headed), AmE often closed (hardheaded).
Connotations
Largely identical. 'Hard' in politics (hard left/right) is equally common. 'Hard' as in 'tough' (a hard man) carries same connotations.
Frequency
Extremely high frequency in both varieties with no significant divergence.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[Adj] + on + NP (hard on the eyes)[Adj] + for + NP (hard for beginners)[Adj] + to-INF (hard to believe)[Adj] + that-CL (It's hard that she left)V + hard (work hard)Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “between a rock and a hard place”
- “hard and fast (rules)”
- “hard nut to crack”
- “play hard to get”
- “die hard”
- “hard feelings”
- “hard up (for money)”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
"We need to look at the hard data before making an investment." (meaning: factual, objective)
Academic
"The phoneme-grapheme correspondence presents a hard problem for language acquisition theories." (meaning: difficult, complex)
Everyday
"This bread is hard—I think it's gone stale." (meaning: physically firm)
Technical
"The system requires a hard reboot to clear the cache." (computing: complete, forced restart)
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The varnish will harden within an hour.
- His attitude hardened after the disagreement.
American English
- The concrete needs to harden overnight.
- Her position on the issue hardened over time.
adverb
British English
- It's raining quite hard outside.
- You need to push harder.
- They tried hard to succeed.
American English
- He hit the ball hard.
- Think hard before you decide.
- She's been training hard for the marathon.
adjective
British English
- The exam was surprisingly hard.
- She lay on the hard ground.
- We're facing hard times ahead.
American English
- That's a hard question to answer.
- The furniture is made of hard maple.
- He's a hard worker.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The table is very hard.
- My homework is hard today.
- He works hard.
- It is hard to see in the dark.
- Finding a parking space in the city centre is hard.
- She has a hard life.
- The ice on the pond is hard enough to skate on.
- Try harder next time!
- Negotiators are taking a hard line on the new contract.
- The company fell on hard times during the recession.
- There is no hard evidence to support his claim.
- It's hard to come by genuine antiques these days.
- The minister faced a hard choice between two unpalatable options.
- The data provides hard proof of the theory's validity.
- His expression hardened as he read the report.
- They drove a hard bargain during the acquisition talks.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a HARD piece of candy: it's SOLID in your hand and DIFFICULT to bite.
Conceptual Metaphor
DIFFICULTIES ARE SOLID OBJECTS / INTENSITY IS HARDNESS (e.g., 'hard rain', 'hard stare', 'hard facts').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid translating 'hard work' as 'тяжёлая работа' when meaning 'intensive, diligent work'—use 'усердная работа'. 'Тяжёлая' implies burden, not effort.
- 'Hard' meaning 'not soft' is 'твёрдый', but 'hard' meaning 'difficult' is 'трудный' or 'сложный'. Don't confuse them.
- The adverb 'hard' (work hard) is NOT 'твёрдо', it's 'усердно' or 'много'. 'Hardly' means 'едва ли', not the adverb of 'hard'.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'hardly' to mean 'in a hard way' (e.g., *'He works hardly' instead of 'He works hard').
- Confusing 'hard' (adj/adv) with 'hardly' (adv meaning 'scarcely').
- Overusing 'very hard' instead of stronger synonyms like 'extremely difficult' or 'grueling' in writing.
Practice
Quiz
In the sentence 'He's hardly working,' what does 'hardly' mean?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. As an adjective: 'a hard surface'. As an adverb: 'work hard'. The form is identical. 'Hardly' is a separate adverb meaning 'scarcely'.
They are often interchangeable for meaning 'not easy'. 'Hard' is more common in spoken English and can feel more direct. 'Difficult' is slightly more formal and can imply complexity, while 'hard' can imply required effort or hardship (e.g., 'a hard life').
No, but it can be ironic or part of an idiom. For example, 'That'll be hard!' said sarcastically means it will be very easy. Also, 'hard' in 'hard worker' means diligent, not that the work is difficult for the worker.
It refers to a physical, tangible printout on paper, which is a 'hard' or solid object, as opposed to a 'soft copy' which is digital data stored on a device.
Collections
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Basic Adjectives
A1 · 46 words · Fundamental describing words used every day.