hard yards

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hard yards

Where it comes from

A sporting analogy referring to the game of rugby football, where making progress on the field, in measurements of yards, may lead to accomplishment and victory.

Alternatively derived from sailing, when furling or unfurling the canvas from certain (perhaps higher) spars was both dangerous and difficult.

noun the hard yards

plural, plural only The key effort in completing a difficult task. do the hard yards
Similar: heavy lifting

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MLA

"hard yards." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/hard%20yards. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

hard yards. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/hard%20yards

Chicago

"hard yards." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/hard%20yards.

BibTeX

@misc{hard_yards_2026,
  title = {hard yards},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/hard%20yards},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}