Translation guide
The process of becoming hard or making something hard, in physical, metaphorical, or technical senses.
Describing when a material or substance becomes physically hard or solid.
The hardening of concrete takes time.
Hardening of the arteries is bad for your health.
Intransitive verb meaning 'to harden' or 'to solidify', used for substances like jelly, cement, or ice.
The jelly hardened in the fridge.
Please wait until the cement hardens.
Transitive verb meaning 'to harden' or 'to solidify' something.
Harden the jelly with agar.
Stiffening or hardening, often used for muscles or rigid materials. Can imply loss of flexibility.
The muscles are stiffening.
Describing when a person's attitude, determination, or a system becomes more rigid or secure.
Also used metaphorically for attitudes or stances becoming rigid.
His attitude hardened.
To make something firm or strong, often used for resolve or security.
I hardened my resolve.
To strengthen or reinforce, commonly used for security hardening.
We need to harden security.
Specialized terms for hardening in fields like metalworking or cybersecurity.
Quenching or hardening metal by heating and rapid cooling.
Harden the steel by quenching to increase its hardness.
Hardening treatment, used in materials science or computing.
Security hardening, specifically in IT contexts.
Hardening the server's security is urgent.
固まる is an everyday verb for things solidifying naturally (jelly, ice). 硬化 is more formal and used for materials, medical conditions, or abstract hardening.
The pudding hardened/set.
The resin hardens.
English often uses 'hardening' as a noun, but Japanese often prefers verb phrases. Instead of 'the hardening of X', use Xが固まる or Xの硬化.
Apply a surface hardening treatment.