刚 gāng — hard; firm; strong; just; barely; exactly
我刚到家就下雨了。Wǒ gāng dào jiā jiù xià yǔ le.It started raining as soon as I got home.
Common words: 刚刚 (gāng gang)、刚才 (gāng cái)、刚好 (gāng hǎo)
Meaning Index
Chinese characters meaning "hard"
Learn Chinese characters with the meaning "hard", including 刚 (gāng), 监 (jiān / jiàn), 固 (gù), 硬 (yìng), 艰 (jiān). Study pinyin, English meanings…
How to Study This Meaning Group
The English word "hard" covers 5 different Chinese characters — 刚 (gāng), 监 (jiān / jiàn), 固 (gù), 硬 (yìng), 艰 (jiān) — and each is its own word with its own feel. These 5 characters do not share a sound — their readings span gāng, jiān, jiàn, gù, yìng — so confirm the pinyin and tone for each one separately. The example sentences further down show how 刚 and the others are actually used, so you learn them in context rather than as a single translation.
- 刚 gānghard; firm; strong; just; barely; exactlyUseful words: 刚刚, 刚才
- 监 jiān / jiànhard; strong; solid; firm; to supervise; to inspectUseful words: 监督, 监狱
- 固 gùhard; strong; solid; sureUseful words: 固定, 坚固
- 硬 yìnghard; stiff; strong; firmUseful words: 硬币, 硬件
- 艰 jiāndifficult; hard; hardshipUseful words: 艰难, 艰苦
Common words for these 5 "hard" characters
Anchor each of these 5 characters in a word you can picture — start with 刚 (gāng) — so "hard" turns into concrete usage instead of a one-to-one translation.
刚刚gāng gangjust recently; just a moment ago刚才gāng cáijust now; a moment ago刚好gāng hǎojust; exactly; to happen to be监督jiān dūto supervise; to oversee; to inspect监狱jiān yùprison监视jiān shìto monitor; to keep a close watch over; surveillance固定gù dìngto fix; to fasten; to set rigidly in place; fixed坚固jiān gùfirm; firmly; hard; stable固体gù tǐsolid硬币yìng bìcoin
See each character in a sentence
Each character below is shown in a short example sentence with pinyin and an English translation — the quickest way to feel the difference between the 5 ways to say "hard".
监 jiān / jiàn — hard; strong; solid; firm; to supervise; to inspect
考试的时候有老师监考。Kǎo shì de shí hou yǒu lǎo shī jiān kǎo.During the exam there is a teacher invigilating.
Common words: 监督 (jiān dū)、监狱 (jiān yù)、监视 (jiān shì)
固 gù — hard; strong; solid; sure
这张桌子做得很结实牢固。Zhè zhāng zhuō zi zuò de hěn jiē shi láo gù.This table is made very sturdy and firm.
Common words: 固定 (gù dìng)、坚固 (jiān gù)、固体 (gù tǐ)
硬 yìng — hard; stiff; strong; firm
这块面包放久了，变得很硬。Zhè kuài miàn bāo fàng jiǔ le, biàn de hěn yìng.This bread has been left out too long and become hard.
Common words: 硬币 (yìng bì)、硬件 (yìng jiàn)、僵硬 (jiāng yìng)
艰 jiān — difficult; hard; hardship
经过艰苦的努力，他们终于完成了任务。Jīng guò jiān kǔ de nǔ lì, tā men zhōng yú wán chéng le rèn wu.After hard efforts, they finally completed the task.
Common words: 艰难 (jiān nán)、艰苦 (jiān kǔ)、艰巨 (jiān jù)
All 5 characters
Open 刚、监、固 or any character below to hear it read aloud and see it used in an example sentence.