hardtack
noun
hard·tack
ˈhärd-ˌtak 
plural hardtack or hardtacks
1
: a saltless hard biscuit, bread, or cracker
2
: any of several mountain mahoganies (especially Cercocarpus betuloides)
Examples of hardtack in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Arrive anonymous, starved on hardtack and shame, in this place where she was erased?
—
Iris Jamahl Dunkle, The Atlantic, 27 July 2025
Alaskans have been eating some form of hardtack since the area’s colonization in the late 19th century.
—Teresa Nowakowski, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Mar. 2023
Dinner will be a choice of hardtack or wet hardtack.
—Al Mullen, The New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2022
Getting your hands on packets of hardtack is just a click away.
—Tribune News Service, cleveland, 14 Feb. 2022
Biscuits went by unappetizing names such as hardtack, rusks and ship’s biscuits, their durability their main asset.
—Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2020
Avocado hardtack rations meager and chicory covfefe drunk cold to avoid microwave surveillance.
—Don Sweeney, sacbee, 3 July 2018
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Iris Jamahl Dunkle, The Atlantic, 27 July 2025
Alaskans have been eating some form of hardtack since the area’s colonization in the late 19th century.
—Teresa Nowakowski, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Mar. 2023
Dinner will be a choice of hardtack or wet hardtack.
—Al Mullen, The New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2022
Getting your hands on packets of hardtack is just a click away.
—Tribune News Service, cleveland, 14 Feb. 2022
Biscuits went by unappetizing names such as hardtack, rusks and ship’s biscuits, their durability their main asset.
—Washington Post, 19 Mar. 2020
Avocado hardtack rations meager and chicory covfefe drunk cold to avoid microwave surveillance.
—Don Sweeney, sacbee, 3 July 2018
Cite this Entry
“Hardtack.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hardtack. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hardtack
noun
hard·tack
-ˌtak
: a hard biscuit or bread made of flour and water without salt
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