Synonyms of hard-boiled

hard-boiled

adjective

ˈhärd-ˈbȯi(-ə)ld 

1

as in ruthless

having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings

a hard-boiled Puritan schoolmaster who was as unyielding as New England granite

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ruthless
• merciless
• stony
• hard
• pitiless
• tough
• callous
• stern
• take-no-prisoners
• heartless
• grim
• soulless
• brutal
• remorseless
• oppressive
• cold-blooded
• obdurate
• harsh
• abusive
• unsparing
• hard-hearted
• thick-skinned
• compassionless
• affectless
• unsympathetic
• malicious
• unfeeling
• hateful
• insensitive
• cruel
• vicious
• inhuman
• unmerciful
• case-hardened
• indurate
• slash-and-burn
• insensate
• inhumane
• desensitized
• pachydermatous
• uncharitable
• ironhearted
• severe
• savage
• stonyhearted
• rough
• rough-and-tumble
• boorish
• mean
• hard-bitten
• thoughtless
• uncaring
• unthinking
• heedless
• virulent
• unfriendly
• ungentle
• cold
• malevolent
• inconsiderate
• jackbooted
• disagreeable
• unloving
• heavy-handed
• surly
• ironfisted
• spiteful
• ironhanded
• acrimonious
• bestial
• rancorous
• sledgehammer
• ill-natured
• brutish
• barbarous
• evil-minded
• austere
• frosty
• ill-tempered
• knock-down, drag-out

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• warm
• sympathetic
• sensitive
• humane
• compassionate
• charitable
• gentle
• merciful
• kindly
• kind
• benevolent
• mild
• tender
• softhearted
• indulgent
• warmhearted
• kindhearted
• lenient
• friendly
• tenderhearted
• cordial
• gracious
• benignant
• good-natured
• tolerant
• affectionate
• loving
• fond
• understanding
• good-tempered
• clement

2

as in smart

having or showing a practical cleverness or judgment

made the hard-boiled business decision to downsize the company, thereby costing thousands of longtime employees their jobs

Synonyms & Similar Words

• smart
• hardheaded
• astute
• veteran
• savvy
• shrewd
• sharp
• experienced
• clear-eyed
• brilliant
• heady
• clever
• intelligent
• wise
• knowing
• sharp-witted
• bright
• cunning
• slick
• canny
• keen
• clear-sighted
• wily
• quick
• sly
• cagey
• subtle
• artful
• crafty
• perceptive
• insightful
• perspicacious
• foxy
• sagacious
• brainy
• devious
• tricky
• sage
• pawky
• discerning
• guileful
• percipient
• resourceful
• sapient
• nimble
• ingenious
• agile
• dodgy
• quick-witted
• discriminating
• apt
• alert
• calculating
• discriminative
• scheming
• sharp-eyed
• sharp-sighted

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• guileless
• naive
• innocent
• ingenuous
• artless
• unknowing
• gullible
• dense
• exploitable
• dull
• obtuse
• unperceptive
• unwise
• dumb
• simple
• slow
• dopey
• stupid
• brainless
• brain-dead
• unintelligent
• thickheaded
• silly
• feebleminded
• foolish
• thoughtless
• idiotic
• witless
• ignorant
• moronic
• weak-minded
• softheaded
• uninformed
• imbecile
• slow-witted
• lunkheaded
• knuckleheaded
• thick-witted
• dim-witted
• empty-headed
• airheaded
• gormless
• lamebrain
• birdbrained
• half-witted

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of hard-boiled

Boiled Placing eggs in boiling water with the shells on is another healthy cooking method that can be used until the yolk is runny (soft-boiled) or fully cooked (hard-boiled). — Cristina Mutchler, Verywell Health, 29 Jan. 2026

The lenses of deep-sea fish are also especially susceptible to clouding, in the same way that egg whites go from clear to opaque when hard-boiled. — Literary Hub, 25 Sep. 2025

For lunch or dinner, top a salad with scrambled or hard-boiled eggs. — Amanda MacMillan, Health, 1 Mar. 2023

This is outback noir — oblique, secretive and as hard-boiled as the ground is hard-baked — and Sen wears it well. — Guy Lodge, Variety, 23 Feb. 2023

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