What it means
A firm, no-thanks kind of refusal. Stronger than just pass, and usually said when something sounds awkward, annoying, overpriced, or flat-out not worth it. It’s common in US speech and online, and it lets you shut a suggestion down fast without giving a whole TED Talk about why.
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."
"Brunch with your ex and her new boyfriend? Hard pass. I’d rather reorganize my junk drawer."
"They said the tickets start at ninety bucks and parking’s extra. Yeah, hard pass."
Where it comes from
It’s built from pass, meaning to decline or skip, with hard added for extra force. The phrase took off in American English as a punchier way to say absolutely not. Same basic idea as refusing your turn or opting out, just with the door shut properly.
Editors of this term
Your vote counts
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We look after this expression together
If they say it where you live and something is missing here, bring it. A magikito looks at it and adds it.
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