What are Hard and Hardly? Detailed difference between Hard and Hardly

What are Hard and Hardly? What are their similarities and differences? Let’s explore the article below with PREP to understand the meanings, structures, uses, and specific examples of Hard and Hardly in English!

I. What is Hard?

Hard is pronounced as /hɑːd/ and functions as both an adjective and an adverb. For example:

• As an adjective, it means: 

• Difficult to understand, do, experience, or deal with. For example: There were some really hard questions in this competition. 

• Not easy to bend, cut, or break. For example: The ice cream in the freezer has become hard and frozen. 

• As an adverb, it means: with a lot of physical or mental effort. For example: I'm not surprised he failed his exam - he didn't exactly try very hard! 

Synonyms of Hard:

Words/phrases associated with Hard:

II. What is Hardly?

Next, to easily distinguish between Hard and Hardly, let’s understand what Hardly means in English.

Hardly is pronounced as /ˈhɑːrd.li/ and functions as an adverb. When combined with auxiliary verbs or modal verbs, it creates different meanings.

• As a adverb, it means: only just; almost not/ certainly not. For example: I hardly knew him. 

• When combined with auxiliary verbs or modal verbs, Hardly usually comes after the auxiliary verb and before the main verb. For example: She can hardly wait to begin. 

• In inverted sentences, Hardly often appears at the beginning as an adverb. For example: Hardly anyone has bothered to reply to this email. 

• The phrase "Hardly ever" describes something that almost never happens. For example: I hardly ever spoke to them. 

1. Common structures of Hardly

Here are some common structures of Hardly in English:

2. Hardly combined with Any, Ever, At All

In negative sentences, we often use Hardly before words like: any, anyone, anybody, anything, and ever. For example:

• They hardly ever go to the theater these days. 

• There’s hardly any petrol left in the car – they need to go to gas station. 

An important note is that Hardly should not be used in negative sentences, as it already carries a negative meaning. Therefore, you cannot place it before: no, none, no one, nobody, nothing, or never.

III. Difference between Hard and Hardly in English

To help you accurately differentiate between Hard and Hardly in English, let’s refer to the table below:

IV. Exercises to differentiate Hard vs Hardly

Practice the following exercise to effectively use these two words Hard and Hardly in English communication!

1. Exercise: Fill in the blank: Hard or Hardly

1. They have won the lottery! I can……..(hard/ hardly) believe it!

2. This movie is really………….(hard/ hardly) to understand.

3. I’ve had …………(hard/ hardly) anything to eat today.

4. If Anna works……….(hard/ hardly) she should pass her exams.

5. Hoa tried…………(hard/ hardly) to hide her tears.

6. There’s…………(hard/ hardly) any milk left.

7. I have…………(hard/ hardly) visited my dad since I moved to Da Nang city.

8. Don’t train too…………(hard/ hardly) – you have just recovered from your injury.

9. Don’t hit the button too………….(hard/ hardly).

10. Heating the clay makes it hard.

2. Answer

The information above provides the clearest difference between Hard and Hardly that PREP has shared with you. We wish you effective study sessions at home and hope you achieve high scores in real exams like IELTS and TOEIC!