: gained by great effort

Examples of hard-won in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
The minimum wage — hard-won by labor — is not supposed to codify the absolute lowest amount employers can get away with paying. New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 30 Dec. 2024 Fans and those in the industry who have been rooting for Hill know her peace is hard-won. Melena Ryzik, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2024 After telling the audience about her childhood dreams, Cher addressed how her success in music was hard-won. Sadie Bell, Peoplemag, 2 Apr. 2024 No matter how devastating these stories get, what binds all of them together is a sense of hope — stubborn, hard-won, fainter at certain times than others but always undeniably there. Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Mar. 2024 One, that Stewart’s very un-Hollywood lack of a mean streak is nonetheless hard-won, the result of a long, painful process of forgiving both himself and his father—in other words, of dealing with his own daddy issues. WIRED, 3 Oct. 2023 For Lee, Nowon was hard-won, though rather meteorically. Shauna Lyon, The New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2023 But the federal recognition was hard-won, having come after a wave of unrest among workers and labor activists brought the issue of workers' rights into public view. Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 4 Sep. 2023 In a state where political decisions are often a balancing act among factions — from progressives to pro-development Democrats to powerful labor unions — some worry that the rush to rebuild will shred hard-won environmental and cultural protections. Shawn Hubler, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1586, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hard-won was in 1586

Dictionary Entries Near hard-won

Cite this Entry

“Hard-won.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hard-won. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.

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