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hard

Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.

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Letters

4 characters

Language

English

word origin

Source

Wiktionary

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Detailed reference entry for the English word "hard", 4-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "hard" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "hard" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.

hard is anEnglishadj. It means: Solid and firm. Pronounced /hɑːd/. It ranks #273 in English word frequency. Often confused with HD and HR.

Key facts for hard
PropertyValue
Headwordhard
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdj
IPA/hɑːd/
Letters4
Frequency rank#273
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of hard in English word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for hard is 4 letters long, classified as anadj, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /hɑːd/. Corpus data places it at rank #273 in overall English word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language.Wiktionary records 31 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 6 documented wrong-spelling variants for hard, with forms such as "ahrd", "hadr", and "hardd". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "HD", "HR", "has", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Etymologically, the entry records: 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”), Alem… Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is hard, spelled H-A-R-D, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    Solid and firm.
  2. 2
    Solid and firm.
  3. 3
    Solid and firm.
  4. 4
    Solid and firm.
  5. 5
    Solid and firm.
  6. 6
    Solid and firm.
  7. 7
    Solid and firm.
  8. 8
    Solid and firm.
  9. 9
    Solid and firm.
  10. 10
    Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
  11. 11
    Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
  12. 12
    Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
  13. 13
    Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
  14. 14
    Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
  15. 15
    Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
  16. 16
    Having a severe property; presenting difficulty.
  17. 17
    Unquestionable; unequivocal.
  18. 18
    Having a comparatively larger or a ninety-degree angle.
  19. 19
    Sexually aroused; having an erect penis.
  20. 20
    Having muscles that are tightened as a result of intense, regular exercise.
  21. 21
    Fortis.
  22. 22
    Fortis.
  23. 23
    Velarized or plain, rather than palatalized.
  24. 24
    Having a severe property; presenting a barrier to enjoyment.
  25. 25
    Having a severe property; presenting a barrier to enjoyment.
  26. 26
    In a physical form, not digital.
  27. 27
    Using a manual or physical process, not by means of a software command.
  28. 28
    Far, extreme.
  29. 29
    Of silk: not having had the natural gum boiled off.
  30. 30
    Of a market: having more demand than supply; being a seller's market.
  31. 31
    Hardcore.

Etymology

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, Swedish hård (“hard”), Faroese, 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).

Synonyms

adamantineconcretefirmgraniticgrimhardinflexiblelithicresistantrigidrobustsolidstiffstoutsturdystonytoughunbendingunyielding

Antonyms

cushionyflexiblesoftspongymoldabletenderyielding

This word in other languages

Spanish(Español)Portuguese(Português)French(Français)German(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ahrd,hadr,hardd,harrd,hhard,hrad

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for hard

Misspelling Variants of "hard"

ahrd4hadr4hardd5harrd5hhard5hrad4
Misspelling Variants of "hard"

Frequency rank: #273 in English

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "hard"?
"hard" is spelled H-A-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is /hɑːd/.
What does "hard" mean?
As an adj, "hard" means: Solid and firm.
What words are commonly confused with "hard"?
"hard" is commonly confused with "HD", "HR", "has". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "hard"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hard" is /hɑːd/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "hard"?
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 (“ha... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Nearby English words

Other entries that begin with the letter H in our English index:

All "H" wordsABCDEFGHIJKL

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Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.