HARDENED definition: made or become hard or harder. See examples of hardened used in a sentence.

HARDENED definition: 1. used to describe someone who has had a lot of bad experiences and as a result no longer gets…. Learn more.

If you describe someone as hardened, you mean that they have had so much experience of something bad or unpleasant that they are no longer affected by it in the way that other people …

: to protect from blast, heat, or radiation (as by a thick barrier or placement underground) : to become hard or harder. Her face hardened at the thought. The presence of certain substances …

to (cause to) become pitiless, unfeeling, or less gentle and sympathetic: [no object] His heart hardened with anger. [~ + object] His cruel life had hardened his heart.

Definition of harden verb from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. [intransitive, transitive] to become or make something become solid or stiff. The varnish takes a few hours to harden. …

These verbs mean to make resistant to hardship, especially through continued exposure: was hardened to frontier life; is acclimated to the tropical heat; was acclimatized by long hours to …

Nov 11, 2025 · Firmly established in a behavior seen as bad; unlikely to change one's ways; inveterate. (computing, military) Having extra defences against attack; highly fortified.

Living in the desert hardened the recruits (= made them more strong and determined). As the war progressed, attitudes on both sides hardened (= became more severe and determined).

When something hardens or when you harden it, it becomes stiff or firm. Mold the mixture into shape while hot, before it hardens. When an attitude or opinion hardens or is hardened, it …