Hard means something is firm and not easy to bend or break. It is the opposite of soft. We use it to talk about things that feel strong or solid.
This rock is very hard to break.
The table is made of hard wood.
Hard means something needs a lot of effort or skill. It can be a task or problem that is not easy to do or understand. This meaning is very common in school and work.
Math is hard for many students.
This test was very hard to finish.
When used as an adverb, hard describes doing something with a lot of effort or force. It means to work strongly or push something with power.
She works hard every day.
He hits the ball hard.
Hard can describe a person or rule that is very strict or not easy to follow. It means being serious and making things difficult for others by not allowing exceptions.
Our teacher is very hard with homework.
The rules in this school are hard.
Hard sometimes describes feelings or experiences that are very difficult or painful emotionally. It means something that causes sadness or stress.
It was a hard time after the accident.
Losing a friend is hard to accept.
Hard in science means a material that is very firm or difficult to change shape. It describes how dense or strong something is, especially in physics and materials.
Hard metals resist scratches well.
Diamond is the hardest natural material.
Hard is used to describe computer storage that is fixed and keeps data even when the power is off. It usually refers to 'hard drive' or 'hard disk'.
I saved the file on the hard drive.
The hard disk stores computer data.
Hard can describe a surface that is solid and firm, not soft or muddy. This use is often in sports like tennis or walking paths.
He plays tennis on a hard court.
The path is hard and dry today.
