hardnesses

1. the property of being rigid and resistant to pressure; not easily scratched; measured on Mohs scaleSynonyms: hardnessAntonyms: softness

2. a quality of water that contains dissolved mineral salts that prevent soap from latheringExamples: "the costs of reducing hardness depend on the relative amounts of calcium and magnesium compounds that are present"Synonyms: hardness

3. devoid of passion or feeling; hardheartednessSynonyms: callosity, callousness, hardness, insensibility, unfeelingness

4. the quality of being difficult to doExamples: "he assigned a series of problems of increasing hardness"; "the ruggedness of his exams caused half the class to fail"Synonyms: hardness, ruggedness

5. excessive sternnessExamples: "severity of character"; "the harshness of his punishment was inhuman"; "the rigors of boot camp"Synonyms: hardness, harshness, inclemency, rigor, rigorousness, rigour, rigourousness, severeness