Synonyms of hardening

hardening

verb

present participle of harden

1

as in freezing

to become physically firm or solid

the glue begins to harden as soon as it is exposed to air

Synonyms & Similar Words

• freezing
• stiffening
• solidifying
• congealing
• concreting
• firming (up)
• setting
• thickening
• indurating
• gelling
• crystallizing
• caking
• encrusting
• coagulating
• tempering
• gelatinizing
• jellying
• clotting
• rigidifying
• ossifying
• callusing
• calcifying
• jelling
• annealing
• petrifying
• case-hardening
• gelating

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• softening
• liquefying
• melting
• thawing
• dissolving
• smelting
• fusing
• fluxing
• unfreezing
• deliquescing

2

as in strengthening

to make able to withstand physical hardship, strain, or exposure

pioneer women who had been hardened by years of living on the plains

Synonyms & Similar Words

• strengthening
• toughening
• fortifying
• inuring
• adjusting
• steeling
• seasoning
• reinforcing
• adapting
• bolstering
• tempering
• indurating
• bracing
• annealing
• enforcing
• acclimating
• vitalizing
• acclimatizing
• invigorating
• immunizing
• conditioning
• buttressing
• accustoming
• boosting
• supporting
• training
• habituating
• propping (up)
• breaking in
• naturalizing
• limbering (up)
• forearming

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• softening
• weakening
• exhausting
• sapping
• crippling
• enervating
• debilitating
• incapacitating
• sensitizing
• enfeebling
• emasculating
• hamstringing

3

as in toughening

to increase the ability of (as a muscle) to exert physical force

arm muscles that were hardened by all the years of casting and hauling his fishing nets

Synonyms & Similar Words

• strengthening
• toughening
• fortifying
• tempering
• beefing (up)
• annealing
• energizing
• vitalizing
• invigorating
• firming (up)
• toning (up)
• restrengthening

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• weakening
• crippling
• debilitating
• damaging
• hurting
• impairing
• paralyzing
• injuring
• incapacitating
• harming
• enervating
• enfeebling
• undermining
• breaking down
• undercutting
• wearing out
• sapping

4

as in stiffening

to make more harsh, uncompromising, or severe

the government hardened restrictions on travel to and from the war-torn nation

Synonyms & Similar Words

• strengthening
• stiffening
• toughening
• harshening

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• easing
• softening
• lessening
• ameliorating
• moderating

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of hardening

An aortic dissection is a life-threatening condition involving a tear in the main artery from the heart, due in this case to what is commonly known as hardening of the arteries. — Duarte Dias, CBS News, 12 July 2026

Over time, this prevents excessive soap scum and residue from hardening on the surface. — Caroline Lubinsky, Martha Stewart, 11 July 2026

Residents are encouraged to continue taking preparedness steps, including maintaining defensible space, considering home-hardening improvements, signing up for emergency alerts and reviewing evacuation plans. — Nollyanne Delacruz, Mercury News, 7 July 2026

Candor, without the balance of Humility, Temperance, and Collaboration, risks hardening into rigidity, creating blind spots and stifling relationships. — Mary Crossan, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026

As that assumption erodes, attention has shifted from hardening GPS toward security through diversification. — Zak Kassas, The Conversation, 23 June 2026

Anna, her hauteur hardening like a protective shell, is aghast. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2026

On both the right and the left, positions are hardening; each tribe has its truth. — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 15 June 2026

Beyond hardening technical defenses, companies operating in the AI age need to examine a wide range of practices, say industry experts, updating the way software patches are deployed and rebuilding the human layer of security. — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 9 June 2026