What it means
A blunt, no-negotiation refusal, basically absolutely not and don’t ask twice. Use it when an invite sounds awkward, pricey, or like it’ll end in regret. It’s just pass with the volume cranked up, common in US chat and online. Handy when you want to shut something down cleanly without launching into a whole speech.
Usage examples
"You tryna hit Dave’s spoken-word night in Silver Lake? Hard pass. Last time he did a 12-minute poem about oat milk. I’m grabbing tacos instead."
"Karaoke at the work party? That is a hard pass from me."
"They wanted us to drive six hours for one coffee, so we gave it a hard pass."
Where it comes from
From pass, to decline your turn as in a card game, sharpened by hard meaning firm and final. A hard pass is a blunt, no-negotiation refusal, the opposite of being talked round into it.
Editors of this term
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