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hard-and-fast

[ hahrd-n-fast, -fahst ]

/ ˈhɑrd nˈfæst, -ˈfɑst /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR hard-and-fast ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

strongly binding; not to be set aside or violated: hard-and-fast rules.

Origin of hard-and-fast

First recorded in 1865–70

SYNONYMS FOR hard-and-fast

fixed, precise, inflexible, inviolable, rigorous, unambiguous.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR hard-and-fast ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM hard-and-fast

hard-and-fast·ness, noun

Words nearby hard-and-fast

hard up, hard water, hard way, the, hard wheat, hard yards, hard-and-fast, hard-ass, hard-asset, hard-bill, hard-bitten, hard-boil

Example sentences from the Web for hard-and-fast

At the least, there must be hard-and-fast laws about insider trading, right?

Are Ethics for Suckers? |Joanne Lipman |April 11, 2011 |DAILY BEAST
It is not possible to draw a hard-and-fast line between individualism and collectivism.

Liberalism and the Social Problem |Winston Spencer Churchill
Why should you draw a hard-and-fast line, sacrifice Belle's happiness to a chimerical idea of manly virtue?

Mount Royal, Volume 1 of 3 |Mary Elizabeth Braddon
There are no such things as hard-and-fast rules; there are only conventions adapted to the climate.

Gobseck |Honore de Balzac

It is impossible to lay down any hard-and-fast rule governing the formation and conduct of the operations of a patrol.

The Plattsburg Manual |O.O. Ellis and E.B. Garey
This should be made a hard-and-fast rule among sportsmen, and a law of sport.

Hints on the Use and Handling of Firearms Generally, and the Revolver in Particular |Lieut. H. Onslow Curling