hard
adj.adj. difficult to do, understand, or deal with. It also describes something solid that does not break or bend easily when you press it.
adj. requiring significant physical or mental effort to accomplish; alternatively, possessing a rigid or solid texture that resists pressure or deformation.
The math exam is very hard.
The ground was so hard after the long frost that the workers could not dig the trench.
Economists warn that the central bank faces a hard choice between raising interest rates to fight inflation and keeping them low to support growth.
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).
From Middle English harden, herden, from Old English heardian (“to become hard”) and hierdan (“to make hard”), from Proto-West Germanic hardēn and hardijan, from Proto-Germanic *hardijaną. Cognates Cognate with Dutch harden (“to harden”), German härten (“to harden”), Danish hærde (“to harden; to temper”), Icelandic herða (“to harden”), Norwegian Bokmål herde (“to harden; to toughen”), Norwegian Nynorsk herda (“to make hard, temper; harden”), Swedish härda (“harden, temper”), Gothic 𐌲𐌰𐌷𐌰𐍂𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (gahardjan), 𐌷𐌰𐍂𐌳𐌾𐌰𐌽 (hardjan, “to harden”).
Can be used both attributively before a noun and predicatively after a linking verb.
I work very hardlyI work very hardHard is both an adjective and an adverb; 'hardly' is a frequency adverb meaning 'almost not'.