hard-boiled

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

A hard-boiled egg is something else entirely: firm, portable, reliable, tucked into lunchboxes or sliced over a salad.

From Salon • Apr. 3, 2026

As his deceit becomes apparent, the music shifts from crisp hip-hop beats to a hard-boiled film noir crescendo.

From BBC • Mar. 26, 2026

Crime fiction became more realistic, an approach presaged by Dashiell Hammett and other hard-boiled American writers in the 1920s.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 20, 2026

A cultured breed distinct from the hard-boiled native brand, its king and queen are Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie, as it is almost impossible not to know.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 16, 2025

She’s made a salad with beets and cucumber, and a hard-boiled egg, and in a little paper cup I see that she’s made her own dressing.

From "Sparrow" by Sarah Moon