hardened; hardening
ˈhärd-niŋ 
ˈhär-dᵊn-iŋ
1
: to make hard or harder
2
: to confirm in disposition, feelings, or action
especially
: to make callous
hardened his heart
3
4
: to protect from blast, heat, or radiation (as by a thick barrier or placement underground)
1
: to become hard or harder
2
a
: to become firm, stable, or settled
b
: to assume an appearance of harshness or severity
her face hardened at the thought
3
: to become gradually acclimatized to unfavorable conditions
—often used with off
plants hardened off before the first frost
Synonyms
Examples of harden in a Sentence
The presence of certain substances in the blood can cause the arteries to harden.
These additives are designed to harden the steel.
substances that can harden the arteries
The news has hardened opposition to the government.
He had been hardened by his years of military service.
Recent Examples on the Web
The unequal recovery since the Great Recession and frustration that costly college degrees haven’t always yielded meaningful returns have only hardened those attitudes.
—
Maria Flynn, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
Since 2020, the nation’s electoral apparatus has upgraded its equipment, tightened its procedures, improved its audits, and hardened its defenses against subversion by bad actors, foreign or domestic.
—Barton Gellman, TIME, 24 Oct. 2024
Her resilience, shaped by a complex past that’s hardened her resolve, anchors her when the community’s secrets begin to surface.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Oct. 2024
But over the course of its third term, the party made a U-turn and hardened its stance on rapprochement with the West.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 27 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for harden 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Maria Flynn, Forbes, 31 Oct. 2024
Since 2020, the nation’s electoral apparatus has upgraded its equipment, tightened its procedures, improved its audits, and hardened its defenses against subversion by bad actors, foreign or domestic.
—Barton Gellman, TIME, 24 Oct. 2024
Her resilience, shaped by a complex past that’s hardened her resolve, anchors her when the community’s secrets begin to surface.
—Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Oct. 2024
But over the course of its third term, the party made a U-turn and hardened its stance on rapprochement with the West.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 27 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for harden
Dictionary Entries Near harden
Cite this Entry
“Harden.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/harden. Accessed 23 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
harden
verb
hard·en
ˈhärd-ᵊn
hardened; hardening
ˈhärd-niŋ
-ᵊn-iŋ
1
: to make or become hard or harder
2
: to make unfeeling or unsympathetic
hardened his heart
3
: to make or become hardy or strong
muscles hardened by exercise
4
: to protect from blast, heat, or radiation (as by a thick barrier or by placing underground)
hardened missile sites
5
a
: to become firm, stable, or settled
b
: to express harshness
hardener
noun
ˈhärd-nər
-ᵊn-ər
Biographical Definition
Harden
2 of 2biographical name (2)
Maximilian 1861–1927 originally Felix Ernst Witkowski German writer
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share