'hard and fast
1Hard and fast — Hard Hard (h[aum]rd), a. [Compar. {Harder} ( [ e]r); superl. {Hardest}.] [OE. hard, heard, AS. heard; akin to OS. & D. hard, G. hart, OHG. herti, harti, Icel. har[eth]r, Dan. haard, Sw. h[*a]rd, Goth. hardus, Gr. kraty s strong, ka rtos, kra tos …
2hard-and-fast — UK US (also hard and fast) adjective ► definite and not to be changed, avoided, or ignored: »hard and fast deadlines/plans/guidelines hard and fast evidence/facts/answers »With whale research, hard and fast facts are difficult to come by. »There… …
3Hard and fast — Fast Fast, a. [Compar. {Faster}; superl. {Fastest}.] [OE., firm, strong, not loose, AS. f[ae]st; akin to OS. fast, D. vast, OHG. fasti, festi, G. fest, Icel. fastr, Sw. & Dan. fast, and perh. to E. fetter. The sense swift comes from the idea of… …
4hard-and-fast — adjective 1. ) not able to be changed: hard and fast rules/regulations 2. ) clear and not able to be questioned: hard and fast distinctions …
5hard-and-fast — adj. invariable; firmly established; as, hard and fast regulations. Syn: strict. [WordNet 1.5] …
6hard-and-fast — hard′ and fast′ adj. strongly binding; not to be set aside or violated: hard and fast rules[/ex] • Etymology: 1865–70 hard′ and fast′ness, n …
7hard-and-fast — adj [only before noun] clear, definite, and always able to be used ▪ It is impossible to give hard and fast rules , but here are some points to consider …
8hard-and-fast — hard and fastness, n. /hahrd n fast , fahst /, adj. strongly binding; not to be set aside or violated: hard and fast rules. [1865 70] Syn. fixed, precise, inflexible, inviolable, rigorous, unambiguous. * * * …
9hard and fast — ► hard and fast (of a rule or distinction) fixed and definitive. Main Entry: ↑hard …
10hard-and-fast — adjective (of rules) stringently enforced hard and fast rules • Syn: ↑strict • Similar to: ↑invariable • Derivationally related forms: ↑strictness (for: ↑ …
