1. Noun
The quality or state of being hard, literally or figuratively.
2. Noun
The cohesion of the particles on the surface of a body, determined by its capacity to scratch another, or be itself scratched;-measured among minerals on a scale of which diamond and talc form the extremes.
3. Noun
The peculiar quality exhibited by water which has mineral salts dissolved in it. Such water forms an insoluble compound with soap, and is hence unfit for washing purposes.
4. Noun
How strongly a material resists being scratched or dented.
A material's resistance to indentation, scratching or local deformation.
“The treatment increased surface hardness.”
5. Noun
a quality of water that contains dissolved mineral salts that prevent soap from lathering; "the costs of reducing hardness depend on the relative amounts of calcium and magnesium compounds that are present"
Vocabulary classified under Academic vocabulary
6. Noun
the property of being rigid and resistant to pressure; not easily scratched; measured on Mohs scale
Vocabulary classified under Engineering
7. Noun
the quality of being difficult to do; "he assigned a series of problems of increasing hardness"; "the ruggedness of his exams caused half the class to fail"
Vocabulary classified under Environmental science
8. Noun
devoid of passion or feeling; hardheartedness
Vocabulary classified under Environmental science
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