Definition of harden Harden

/hɑˈɹdʌn/ - [hardun] - hard•en

We found 14 definitions of harden from 5 different sources.

What does harden mean?

WordNet

Verb hardens, hardening, hardened
harden - become hard or harder; "The wax hardened"
		indurate
		soften become soft or softer; "The bread will soften if you pour some liquid on it"
		change undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature; "She changed completely as she grew older"; "The weather changed last night"
		encrust, incrust form a crust or a hard layer
		callus form a callus or calluses; "His foot callused"
		calcify convert into lime; "the salts calcified the rock"
		cure prepare by drying, salting, or chemical processing in order to preserve; "cure meats"; "cure pickles"; "cure hay"
harden - make hard or harder; "The cold hardened the butter"
		indurate
		soften become soft or softer; "The bread will soften if you pour some liquid on it"
		indurate, harden become fixed or established; "indurated customs"
		change undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature; "She changed completely as she grew older"; "The weather changed last night"
		face-harden harden steel by adding carbon
		callus form a callus or calluses; "His foot callused"
		anneal, normalize, temper bring to a desired consistency, texture, or hardness by a process of gradually heating and cooling; "temper glass"
		indurate, harden become fixed or established; "indurated customs"
harden - harden by reheating and cooling in oil; "temper steel"
		temper
		modify make less severe or harsh or extreme; "please modify this letter to make it more polite"; "he modified his views on same-gender marriage"
harden - cause to accept or become hardened to; habituate; "He was inured to the cold"
		inure, indurate
		accustom, habituate make psychologically or physically used (to something); "She became habituated to the background music"
		callous, cauterise, cauterize make insensitive or callous; deaden feelings or morals
		brace oneself for, prepare for, steel oneself against, steel onself for prepare mentally or emotionally for something unpleasant
harden - make fit; "This trip will season even the hardiest traveller"
		season
		toughen make tough or tougher; "This experience will toughen her"

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Wiktionary

harden (Verb)
To become hard tough, resistant to pressure.
harden (Verb)
To make something hard or harder tough, resistant to pressure.
harden (Verb)
To become or make a person or thing resistant or less sensitive.

Webster DictionaryWebster's Unabridged Dictionary 📘

harden (v. t.)
To make hard or harder; to make firm or compact; to indurate; as, to harden clay or iron.
harden (v. t.)
To accustom by labor or suffering to endure with constancy; to strengthen; to stiffen; to inure; also, to confirm in wickedness or shame; to make unimpressionable.
harden (v. i.)
To become hard or harder; to acquire solidity, or more compactness; as, mortar hardens by drying.
harden (v. i.)
To become confirmed or strengthened, in either a good or a bad sense.