hardly

adverb

hard·​ly ˈhärd-lē 

1

a

—used to emphasize a minimal amount or degree

I hardly knew her. [=I didn't know her well at all.]

It's almost new—there's hardly a scratch [=there are almost no scratches] on it.

There's been hardly any [=almost no] news.

There's hardly any [=almost none] left.

Hardly anyone [=almost no one] showed up.

We hardly ever [=almost never] see you these days!

b

: by a narrow margin of time : only just

We've hardly begun.

c

: almost not

I can hardly believe it!

She was hardly able to control her excitement.

d

: certainly not

That news is hardly surprising.

That hardly seems fair. [=that certainly does not seem fair]

If you're satisfied with what you've got, you're hardly going to look for anything better.

—Flannery O'Connor

e

informal

—used to soften a negative

… you can't hardly tell who anyone is or isn't.

—George Bernard Shaw

2

dated : with difficulty : painfully

… where the means of existence was wrung so hardly from the soil …

—Sir Winston Churchill

3

dated : in a severe manner : harshly

Things may go hardly with us … before the war is over.

—Nevil Shute

… he ranted on in a towering passion of wrath and grief. … He believed himself hardly used indeed.

—E. Barrington (Elizabeth Louisa Moresby Beck)

4

archaic : with force : vigorously

… earrings jangling down hardly on diminutive gold chains …

—Osbert Sitwell

Can hardly be used with a negative?: Usage Guide

Hardly in sense 1d is used sometimes with not for emphasis.

Just another day at the office? Not hardly.

In sense 1e with a negative verb (such as can't, wouldn't, didn't) it does not make a double negative but softens the negative. In "you can't hardly find a red one," the sense is that you can find a red one, but only with difficulty; in "you can't find a red one," the sense is that red ones are simply not available. Use of hardly with a negative verb is a speech form; it is most commonly heard in Southern and Midland speech areas. In other speech areas and in all discursive prose, hardly is normally used with a positive.

You can hardly find a red one.

Synonyms

• brutally
• hard
• harshly
• ill
• oppressively
• roughly
• severely
• sternly
• stiffly

Examples of hardly in a Sentence

It hardly matters what I think.

The changes in service have hardly been noticed.

There are hardly any new features in this software.

Hardly anyone showed up for the meeting.

Hardly a day goes by when I don't think about you.

This is hardly a new idea for a movie.

“Is this a new idea for a movie?” “Hardly! I've seen dozens of movies just like it.”

Recent Examples on the Web

But according to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, inflation was hardly an issue. —Nicole Russell, USA TODAY, 13 Dec. 2024

This is hardly a surprise in the current high inflationary period where companies have scrambled to bring down costs and improve efficiency. —Truebridge Capital, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024

Wray is hardly the only official to fold in the face of Trump’s early threats. —Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2024

But the junta’s crimes can hardly be relegated to the past. —Joshua Hammer, Smithsonian Magazine, 12 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Phrases Containing hardly

• can hardly wait
• hardly a
• hardly any
• hardly ever
• hardly/scarcely than

Kids Definition

hardly

adverb

hard·​ly ˈhärd-lē 

1

: in a severe or harsh manner

deal hardly with them

2

: with difficulty

a hardly won victory

3

: only just : barely, scarcely

we hardly knew them

4

: certainly not

that news is hardly surprising