hard of hearing

adjective

: relating to or having partial hearing loss

people who are hard of hearing

the deaf and hard of hearing community

… the task force … will ask the Nebraska Department of Education to hire a national consulting firm with expertise in the area of deaf and hard of hearing education to analyze Nebraska's system.

—Margaret Reist

Examples of hard of hearing in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

One of the main applications is for the deaf and hard of hearing in the workplace, where accessibility can be challenging. —Simon Hill, Wired News, 7 May 2025

From Maryland to Mecca, the weather is sending us a message—but some politicians remain stubbornly hard of hearing. —Jack Sullivan, airmail.news, 28 Dec. 2024

These specs are intended for those who are hard of hearing. —Eric Zeman, PCMAG, 10 Jan. 2025

In addition to all of the specialty plates offered for purchase, there are also specific plates to accommodate qualified individuals or vehicles, such as alternative fuel plates, energy efficient plates, disability plates and deaf/hard of hearing plates. —Dylan Wickman, The Arizona Republic, 10 Jan. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1564, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hard of hearing

• commandeering
• disappearing
• domineering
• engineering
• interfering
• overhearing
• persevering
• pioneering
• privateering
• profiteering
• racketeering
• reappearing

Kids Definition

hard-of-hearing

adjective

ˌhärd-ə(v)-ˈhi(ə)r-iŋ

: relating to or having a faulty but functional sense of hearing

Medical Definition

hard of hearing

adjective

hard of hear·​ing

ˌhärd-ə(v)-ˈhi(ə)r-iŋ

: relating to or having partial hearing loss

adults who are hard of hearing

the deaf and hard of hearing community