hard*/*/*/

[hɑːd] adj I

1) stiff, firm, and not easy to bend or break

hard wooden benches[/ex]

The ice on the lake was so hard we could walk on it.[/ex]

2) difficult to do

Some of the questions were very hard.[/ex]

I found the English exam quite hard.[/ex]

It is hard for young people to get jobs in this area.[/ex]

It's hard to explain why I love this place so much.[/ex]

3) involving a lot of effort

Lifting stones this size is pretty hard work.[/ex]

I need to relax at the end of a hard day.[/ex]

4) unpleasant and full of problems

My grandmother had a very hard life.[/ex]

The family has had a hard time recently.[/ex]

It's very hard on parents when their children are being bullied at school.[/ex]

5) strong and not easily frightened

He likes to pretend he's hard, but he's really soft underneath.[/ex]

6) unkind, or angry

Don't be too hard on her – she was only trying to help.[/ex]

•

be hard on sth — informal to cause damage to something[/ex]

These exercises are quite hard on the knees.[/ex]

give sb a hard time — informal to be unpleasant to someone, or to criticize them a lot[/ex]

hard and fast — fixed and not able to be changed[/ex]

hard of hearing — unable to hear well[/ex]

hard to come by — informal difficult to find or get[/ex]

Good teachers are hard to come by.[/ex]

learn the hard way — to learn how to do something by trying to do it and making a lot of mistakes[/ex]

no hard feelings — spoken used for telling someone that you are not angry with them after an argument or disagreement, and that you hope that they are not angry with you[/ex]

II

adv

hard */*/*/[hɑːd]

1) using a lot of effort or force

The whole team has worked very hard.[/ex]

I was trying very hard to remember her name.[/ex]

I didn't mean to hit him so hard.[/ex]

2) if it is raining or snowing hard, a lot of rain or snow is falling

•

take sth hard — to be very upset by something[/ex]