Question

 

Hard:

When something is solid, firm and difficult to break or bend.

Difficult to understand, do, experience or deal with; needing or using a lot of physical or mental effort 

 

Hard can be both an adjective and an adverb

Examples as an adjective:

• Diamonds are extremely hard stones
• The basketball trainer is very hard if you miss the rebound you have to do 20 push-ups
• The ground is hard after last night's cold weather.
• Diamonds are the hardest materials known to man.
• Learning another language is hard.

Examples as adverbs:

• Tom worked very hard to make his business profitable
• The little boy held his father’s hand hard, he didn’t want to lose him

 

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Hardly:

• very little/few, almost none or not
• very difficult, nearly impossible
• rarely
• absolutely not

Examples: 

• I could hardly hear him speaking, he should have used a microphone
• Mike had hardly walked through the front door when the phone rang