adj.

1. not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure;
   difficult
   
   • a difficult task
   • nesting places on the cliffs are difficult of access
   • difficult times
   • a difficult child
   • found himself in a difficult situation
   • why is it so hard for you to keep a secret?
2. dispassionate; "took a hard look"; "a hard bargainer";
3. resisting weight or pressure
4. very strong or vigorous;
   knockout, severe
   
   • strong winds
   • a hard left to the chin
   • a knockout punch
   • a severe blow
5. characterized by toilsome effort to the point of exhaustion; especially physical effort;
   arduous, backbreaking, grueling, gruelling, heavy, laborious, operose, punishing, toilsome
   
   • worked their arduous way up the mining valley
   • a grueling campaign
   • hard labor
   • heavy work
   • heavy going
   • spent many laborious hours on the project
   • set a punishing pace
6. produced without vibration of the vocal cords;
   unvoiced, voiceless, surd
   
   • unvoiced consonants such as `p' and `k' and `s'
7. (of light) transmitted directly from a pointed light source;
   concentrated
8. (of speech sounds); produced with the back of the tongue raised toward or touching the velum
   
   • Russian distinguished between hard consonants and palatalized or soft consonants
9. given to excessive indulgence of bodily appetites especially for intoxicating liquors;
   intemperate, heavy
   
   • a hard drinker
10. being distilled rather than fermented; having a high alcoholic content;
    strong
    
    • hard liquor
11. unfortunate or hard to bear;
    tough
    
    • had hard luck
    • a tough break
12. dried out
    
    • hard dry rolls left over from the day before

adv.

1. with effort or force or vigor
   
   • the team played hard
   • worked hard all day
   • pressed hard on the lever
   • hit the ball hard
   • slammed the door hard
2. with firmness;
   firmly
   
   • held hard to the railing
3. earnestly or intently
   
   • thought hard about it
   • stared hard at the accused
4. causing great damage or hardship;
   severely
   
   • industries hit hard by the depression
   • she was severely affected by the bank's failure
5. slowly and with difficulty
   
   • prejudices die hard
6. indulging excessively;
   heavily, intemperately
   
   • he drank heavily
7. into a solid condition
   
   • concrete that sets hard within a few hours
8. very near or close in space or time
   
   • it stands hard by the railroad tracks
   • they were hard on his heels
   • a strike followed hard upon the plant's opening
9. with pain or distress or bitterness
   
   • he took the rejection very hard
10. to the full extent possible; all the way
    
    • hard alee
    • the ship went hard astern
    • swung the wheel hard left