Synonyms for
Harden
Definition
to make something or someone hard or harder
Synonyms & similar words
Synonyms by register
Formal
Informal
Literary
Antonyms
Common collocations
- harden the heart
- harden the arteries
- harden into
- harden off
- harden the soil
- harden the resolve
- harden the surface
Word family
Usage note
When referring to making something more resistant to damage or attack, 'harden' is often used in a military or security context. In a medical context, 'harden' can refer to arteries becoming less flexible.
Example sentences
- The chocolate will harden if you put it in the fridge.
- He had to harden his heart and say no to the beggar.
- You need to harden up if you want to play football.
- The soil will harden if it doesn't rain.
- The muscles in his arms began to harden as he lifted weights.
Quotes
The strongest steel is forged by the fires of hell. It is pounded and struck repeatedly before it's plunged back into the molten fire. The fire gives it power and flexibility, and the blows give it strength. Those two things make the metal pliable and able to withstand every battle it's called upon to fight. - Sherrilyn Kenyon
A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials. - Lucius Annaeus Seneca
The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places. - Ernest Hemingway