What does hard mean?
Word: Hard
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Hard means firm and solid, so it does not give way when you press it. Hard also means difficult, not easy.
Synonyms: firm, solid, difficult
Antonyms: easy
How do you spell hard?
Syllables: hard
Tricky part: Hard is short, so the trap is the vowel: it is the ar of car and star, never aa or ur.
Watch out for: haard, haerd
Memory tip: Think of a hard car bonnet: hard uses the same ar as car.
Idioms and Phrases
- a hard nut to crack: a problem or person that is difficult to deal with Example: "The last puzzle in the book was a hard nut to crack."
Hard in a sentence
Example 1: The ground was too hard to dig after the long summer.
Example 2: This sum is hard, but I will try again.
Example 3: Coconut shells are hard, so we used a knife to open one.
Fun Fact
Diamond is one of the hardest natural materials, so tiny diamonds are fixed onto tools that cut glass and stone.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word:
hard
a) soft
b) stiff
c) tough
d) rigid
Show answer
a) soft. Soft is the opposite of hard; rigid, stiff and tough all describe hard things.
Word Makeup
Choose the correct suffix to add to the word:
hard
a) shipe
b) ship
c) sheap
d) shep
Show answer
b) ship. Hardship, a time of great difficulty, is hard with ship on the end.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
The mango was still green and harde, so Nani kept it in rice to ripen.
a) green
b) ripen
c) mango
d) harde
Show answer
d) harde. Hard finishes on its d; no e follows it.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the correctly spelt word:
a) sollid
b) dificult
c) hard
d) stiffe
Show answer
c) hard. Difficult has a double f, stiff ends in ff with no e and solid has one l; hard is spelt right.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. In which sentence does hard mean difficult?
a) The floor was hard and cold.
b) The maths test was hard.
c) The coconut shell was hard.
d) The ice was as hard as stone.
Show answer
b) The maths test was hard.
2. If you work hard, you work ____.
a) very slowly
b) only a little
c) without thinking
d) with a lot of effort
Show answer
d) with a lot of effort
