hard-edge

adjective

ˈhärd-ˈej How to pronounce hard-edge (audio)
: of or relating to abstract painting characterized by geometric forms with clearly defined boundaries
an artist known for hard-edge paintings

Examples of hard-edge 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.
By this time Jaray had begun to earn notice for her hard-edge geometric abstractions, which critics lauded as simultaneously sober and expressive. — News Desk, Artforum, 29 May 2026 Constructed of flat, hard-edge but usually curving slabs of color, the compositions evoke mysterious interiors or extreme close-ups. — Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 5 July 2024 On the Due Più, the material adds a softer touch to the hard-edge minimalism of Vigo’s contemporaries, with results that are undeniably groovy. — Evan Moffitt, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2024 By 1962, Jaray was making hard-edge abstract paintings that conjured architectural structures or details; delineated with masking tape and executed without visible brush strokes, they were carefully plotted out through multiple preliminary drawings, and in later years, on a computer. — Anne Doran, ARTnews.com, 25 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1961, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hard-edge was in 1961

Rhymes for hard-edge

See All Rhymes for hard-edge

Browse Nearby Words

Hardecanute
hard-edge
hard-edged
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hard-edge.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hard-edge. Accessed 10 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All