English
hard
Hard comes from Old English heard ‘hard, harsh, austere, severe, rigorous, stern,…’, and goes back to Proto-Germanic *harduz.
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*harduzreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hard(ī)reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150heard‘hard’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hard
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*harduzreconstructed
- Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*hard(ī)reconstructed
- Old Englishc. 450–1150heard‘hard’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500hard
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588same form
Earliest quotation: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “The King your brother is now hard at hand,…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *kret- ‘strong, powerful’
rather, bureaucracy, bureaucratic, aristocracy, bureaucrat, 45 more
Today it means
adj Solid and firm.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Germanic *harduz / hard