HARD-BOILED Synonyms: 221 Similar and Opposite Words

hard-boiled

adjective

ˈhärd-ˈbȯi(-ə)ld

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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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-boiled 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, 9 Sep. 2025 In a smaller pot of water over high heat, boil eggs, covered, until just hard-boiled, 7 minutes, then run under cold water. —

Aleksandra Crapanzano, WSJ, 8 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 As Detective Munch, Mr. Belzer was brainy but hard-boiled, cynical but sensitive. —

Alex Traub, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2023

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hard-boiled

Adjective

For the first time, the defense attorney becomes the defendant, forced to fight for his own freedom while facing off against ruthless prosecutor Dana Berg (Constance Zimmer).

— Veronica Villafañe, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
And, as part of the deal, city planners aim to update development protocols to meet the challenges of a more ruthless wildfire regime.

— Mark Dee January 27, Idaho Statesman, 28 Jan. 2026