Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Hard \Hard\, a. [Compar. {Harder}; superl. {Hardest}.] [{OE}.
   heard, AS. heard; akin to OS. & D. heard, G. hart, OHG.
   harti, Icel. har?r, Dan. haard, Sw. h[*a]rd, Goth. hardus,
   Gr.? strong, ?, ?, strength, and also to E. -ard, as in
   coward, drunkard, -crat, -cracy in autocrat, democracy; cf.
   Skr. kratu strength, ? to do, make. Cf. {Hardy}.]
   1. Not easily penetrated, cut, or separated into parts; not
      yielding to pressure; firm; solid; compact; -- applied to
      material bodies, and opposed to soft; as, hard wood; hard
      flesh; a hard apple.

   2. Difficult, mentally or judicially; not easily apprehended,
      decided, or resolved; as a hard problem.

            The hard causes they brought unto Moses. --Ex.
                                                  xviii. 26.

            In which are some things hard to be understood. --2
                                                  Peter iii. 16.

   3. Difficult to accomplish; full of obstacles; laborious;
      fatiguing; arduous; as, a hard task; a disease hard to
      cure.

   4. Difficult to resist or control; powerful.

            The stag was too hard for the horse.  --L'Estrange.

            A power which will be always too hard for them.
                                                  --Addison.

   5. Difficult to bear or endure; not easy to put up with or
      consent to; hence, severe; rigorous; oppressive;
      distressing; unjust; grasping; as, a hard lot; hard times;
      hard fare; a hard winter; hard conditions or terms.

            I never could drive a hard bargain.   --Burke.

   6. Difficult to please or influence; stern; unyielding;
      obdurate; unsympathetic; unfeeling; cruel; as, a hard
      master; a hard heart; hard words; a hard character.

   7. Not easy or agreeable to the taste; stiff; rigid;
      ungraceful; repelling; as, a hard style.

            Figures harder than even the marble itself.
                                                  --Dryden.

   8. Rough; acid; sour, as liquors; as, hard cider.

   9. (Pron.) Abrupt or explosive in utterance; not aspirated,
      sibilated, or pronounced with a gradual change of the
      organs from one position to another; -- said of certain
      consonants, as c in came, and g in go, as distinguished
      from the same letters in center, general, etc.

   10. Wanting softness or smoothness of utterance; harsh; as, a
       hard tone.

   11. (Painting)
       (a) Rigid in the drawing or distribution of the figures;
           formal; lacking grace of composition.
       (b) Having disagreeable and abrupt contrasts in the
           coloring or light and shade.

   {Hard cancer}, {Hard case}, etc. See under {Cancer}, {Case},
      etc.

   {Hard clam}, or {Hard-shelled clam} (Zo["o]l.), the guahog.
      

   {Hard coal}, anthracite, as distinguished from bituminous or
      soft coal.

   {Hard and fast}. (Naut.) See under {Fast}.

   {Hard finish} (Arch.), a smooth finishing coat of hard fine
      plaster applied to the surface of rough plastering.

   {Hard lines}, hardship; difficult conditions.

   {Hard money}, coin or specie, as distinguished from paper
      money.

   {Hard oyster} (Zo["o]l.), the northern native oyster. [Local,
      U. S.]

   {Hard pan}, the hard stratum of earth lying beneath the soil;
      hence, figuratively, the firm, substantial, fundamental
      part or quality of anything; as, the hard pan of
      character, of a matter in dispute, etc. See {Pan}.

   {Hard rubber}. See under {Rubber}.

   {Hard solder}. See under {Solder}.

   {Hard water}, water, which contains lime or some mineral
      substance rendering it unfit for washing. See {Hardness},
      3.

   {Hard wood}, wood of a solid or hard texture; as walnut, oak,
      ash, box, and the like, in distinction from pine, poplar,
      hemlock, etc.

   {In hard condition}, in excellent condition for racing;
      having firm muscles;-said of race horses.

   Syn: Solid; arduous; powerful; trying; unyielding; stubborn;
        stern; flinty; unfeeling; harsh; difficult; severe;
        obdurate; rigid. See {Solid}, and {Arduous}.

Source : WordNet®

hardest
     See {hard}

hard
     adj 1: not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to
            accomplish or comprehend or endure; "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?" [syn: {difficult}]
            [ant: {easy}]
     2: metaphorically hard; "a hard fate"; "took a hard look"; "a
        hard bargainer"; "a hard climb" [ant: {soft}]
     3: not yielding to pressure or easily penetrated; "hard as
        rock" [ant: {soft}]
     4: very strong or vigorous; "strong winds"; "a hard left to the
        chin"; "a knockout punch"; "a severe blow" [syn: {knockout},
         {severe}]
     5: characterized by toilsome effort to the point of exhaustion;
        especially physical effort; "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" [syn: {arduous}, {backbreaking},
         {grueling}, {gruelling}, {heavy}, {laborious}, {punishing},
         {toilsome}]
     6: of speech sounds [ant: {soft}]
     7: of a drinker or drinking; indulging intemperately; "does a
        lot of hard drinking"; "a heavy drinker" [syn: {hard(a)},
        {heavy}]
     8: having undergone fermentation; "hard cider" [syn: {fermented}]
     9: having a high alcoholic content; "hard liquor" [syn: {strong}]
     10: unfortunate or hard to bear; "had hard luck"; "a tough
         break" [syn: {tough}]
     11: dried out; "hard dry rolls left over from the day before"
     [also: {hardest}, {harder}]

hard
     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; "held hard to the railing" [syn: {firmly}]
     3: earnestly or intently; "thought hard about it"; "stared hard
        at the accused"
     4: causing great damage or hardship; "industries hit hard by
        the depression"; "she was severely affected by the bank's
        failure" [syn: {severely}]
     5: slowly and with difficulty; "prejudices die hard"
     6: indulging excessively; "he drank heavily" [syn: {heavily}, {intemperately}]
        [ant: {lightly}]
     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"
     [also: {hardest}, {harder}]