HARD UP Synonyms: 64 Similar and Opposite Words

hard up

adjective

Definition of hard up next

as in poor

lacking money or material possessions despite being undeniably hard up, they had too much pride to accept charity

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of hard up Kai Jones does not have two-way eligibility, and that matters a lot for a team hard up against the luxury tax. —

Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 14 Aug. 2025 This letter descended to Charles Austen and thence to his granddaughters, who, hard up, sold it in the 1920s, part of a larger cache of relics and manuscripts. —

Literary Hub, 4 Aug. 2025 Obviously someone who loses their job and is really hard up for cash will give serious thought to canceling or pausing subscriptions. —

Josef Adalian, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2025 After decades of bringing us the incredible shrinking transistor, chipmakers are now hard up against the limits of their printing technique: Trying to use today’s ultraviolet lasers to print the next generation of circuits would be like trying to trace a fine line with a preschooler’s crayon. —

IEEE Spectrum, 30 Dec. 2011 See All Example Sentences for hard up

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hard up

Adjective

These closures reflect various factors, including poor investment returns, a lack of government support for refinery upgrades and higher carbon and energy costs.

— Ian King, CNBC, 15 Apr. 2026
After McCandless and her council colleagues approved the sweeping tax breaks, King consistently spoke on how its planning process exemplified poor communication from the city, saying that current leaders should have advocated for a better deal for Independence.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 14 Apr. 2026