hardened
hard·ened/ˈhɑɹd(ə)nd/adjective, verb
hardened is spelled H-A-R-D-E-N-E-D: 8 letters and 2 syllables (hard·ened). It appears 3.3 times per million words in written English, the 14,509th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, hardened means “Made physically hard” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in hardened?
| Letters | 8: H-A-R-D-E-N-E-D |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: hard·ened |
| In writing | 3.3 times per million words; the 14,509th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is hardened?
Hardened appears 3.3 times per million words in written English, the 14,509th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce hardened?
- UK /ˈhɑːdn̩d/
- US /ˈhɑɹd(ə)nd/
Hardened has 2 syllables, split hard·ened in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-hardened.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of hardened
- more hardened comparative
- most hardened superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does hardened mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Made physically hard.
hardened steel
- 2
Having been accustomed or desensitized to something unpleasant through exposure or experience; inured.
hardened police officers
- 3
Unfeeling; pitiless; callous.
The bloody scene could reduce even the most hardened soldier to tears.
- 4
Firmly established in a behavior seen as bad; unlikely to change one's ways; inveterate.
hardened criminals
- 5
Having extra defences against attack; highly fortified.
a hardened air base
verb
- 1
simple past and past participle of harden
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Hardened in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Spanish | endurecido , aguerrido |
| French | endurci |
| German | abgehärtet, verhärtet , gehärtet |
| Portuguese | endurecido |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.