1
as in certain
having been established and usually not subject to change
hard-and-fast rules that governed the corporate environment in those days included strictures regarding office dress that were rigidly enforced
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unchangeable
not capable of changing or being changed
hard-and-fast beliefs that are the rock-solid foundation of their religion
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hard-and-fast
One is the Gilded Age of the late nineteenth century, when tariffs, crony capitalism, and hard-and-fast racial hierarchies were the stuff of American politics.
—
Beverly Gage, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025
But the requirement is not hard-and-fast.
—Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 9 Mar. 2025
While there are no hard-and-fast rules for makeup, referencing the color wheel is always a good place to start (and perhaps a nostalgic reminder of grade school art class).
—Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 26 Feb. 2025
Instead of having a hard-and-fast 60-second rule, experts said to focus on a few key factors.
—Cathy Cassata, Health, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hard-and-fast
Beverly Gage, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025
But the requirement is not hard-and-fast.
—Kenneth R. Gosselin, Hartford Courant, 9 Mar. 2025
While there are no hard-and-fast rules for makeup, referencing the color wheel is always a good place to start (and perhaps a nostalgic reminder of grade school art class).
—Lauren Valenti, Vogue, 26 Feb. 2025
Instead of having a hard-and-fast 60-second rule, experts said to focus on a few key factors.
—Cathy Cassata, Health, 25 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hard-and-fast
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hard-and-fast
Adjective
-
In the last two weeks, Trump issued an executive order directing agencies to sunset every existing energy regulation by next year and, in a separate memorandum, said those agencies may repeal certain regulations without allowing the public to weigh in.—
Nichola Groom and Valerie Volcovici,
USA Today,
23 Apr. 2025
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Since then, several federal judges have issued habeas writs blocking certain deportations from the U.S. and even movement of potential deportees from one state to another.—
Andrea Seielstad,
The Conversation,
22 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The changes came after President Donald Trump signed an executive order declaring that the U.S. government would only recognize two unchangeable sexes, male and female.—
Kaitlyn Schwanemann,
NBC news,
31 Mar. 2025
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Nonlinear optical devices must be crafted with a single, unchangeable function determined during fabrication.—
The Physics arXiv Blog,
Discover Magazine,
31 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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This independence is intended to allow the Fed to focus on its dual mandate: promoting maximum employment and maintaining stable prices.—
Nicholas Creel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Apr. 2025
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The final step of the process uses what’s left after biofuel production as a stable, non-leaching crop fertilizer.—
Robin Roenker,
USA Today,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Typically, scientists think of cratons as unchanging, nigh on eternal.—
Meghan Bartels,
Scientific American,
17 Apr. 2025
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There’s a strong element of passion in it, whereas my dad’s need to save money was a slow-burning, unchanging aspect of his relation to the world.—
Geoff Dyer,
Harpers Magazine,
28 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Today’s sentence is the culmination of justice, but this is not the final chapter of Kyhara’s life story.—
Nicholas Williams,
New York Daily News,
24 Apr. 2025
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The Yorktown's final resting place wasn't discovered until a 1998 expedition found it about 1,000 miles northwest of Honolulu.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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In other words, to make its conventional arsenal survivable, the United States must replace its current stock of fixed and visible assets with elusive forces in multiple domains, following the nuclear triad model.—
ANDREW S. LIM,
Foreign Affairs,
22 Apr. 2025
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Because the actual date of the spring equinox can differ by a day or two, the Catholic Church created a fixed date of March 21 to define it, known as the ecclesiastical equinox.—
Carlie Procell,
USA Today,
16 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Sandoval has received some pay bumps, including a temporary $10,000-a-year bonus for Hawaii special education teachers designed to alleviate shortages in that and other hard-to-staff areas.—
Alia Wong,
USA TODAY,
14 Feb. 2023
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Whether those numbers are an overstatement, or possibly an understatement, is hard to say.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes,
13 Feb. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Hard-and-fast.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hard-and-fast. Accessed 30 Apr. 2025.
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