hardware

noun

hard·​ware ˈhärd-ˌwer 

1

: ware (such as fittings, cutlery, tools, utensils, or parts of machines) made of metal

2

: major items of equipment or their components used for a particular purpose

educational hardware

: such as

a

: military equipment

b

: the physical components (such as electronic and electrical devices) of a vehicle (such as a spacecraft) or an apparatus (such as a computer)

3

: an award (such as a trophy, medal, or cup) given in a sports competition

Synonyms of hardware

• equipment
• gear
• apparatus

Examples of hardware in a Sentence

She bought some new hardware for her system.

gathered together the hardware needed to set up a first aid station at the finish line for the marathon

Recent Examples on the Web

But at his parade, most military hardware was conspicuously absent. —Will Ripley, CNN Money, 26 Feb. 2026

Starliner suffered a series of hardware, software and mission management delays including an initial uncrewed flight in 2019 that missed its rendezvous with the space station. —Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Feb. 2026

For tasks like these, Callosum says, its system can deliver twice the accuracy, sevenfold faster performance, and at a fourfold lower cost compared with running the same workloads on identical hardware. —Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 26 Feb. 2026

Facial recognition and fingerprint reading technology have been around awhile, but ROC claims that its systems are less hardware-intensive and faster than those of rivals. —Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 25 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing hardware

• hardware cloth

Rhymes for hardware

• abwehr
• affair
• affaire
• airfare
• altair
• armchair
• aware
• beware
• bugbear
• carfare
• childcare
• compare

Kids Definition

hardware

noun

hard·​ware ˈhär-ˌdwa(ə)r 

-ˌdwe(ə)r

1

: articles (as fittings, cutlery, tools, utensils, or parts of machines) made of metal

2

: the equipment used for a particular purpose

computer hardware

military hardware