hard R
Almost NC-17 designation
Hard R refers to pronouncing the word "nigger" with a fully articulated final R, as opposed to the softer "nigga" ending common in African American Vernacular English.
The distinction matters because "nigga" has been partially reclaimed in Black culture while "hard R" signals the explicitly racist slur: He didn't say nigga, he said it with the hard R.
The phrase often appears when describing incidents of racial abuse.
- rhoticPronouncing R sounds fully
- reclaimingTaking possession again
- explicitClearly and directly expressed
- slurInsulting group label
- accentRegional speech pattern
taboo · euphemism · societal norms · language policing · offensive · derogatory · alveolar · dialect · n-word · phoneme · trill · racial slur · hate speech · articulation · tap · parental guidance · mature audiences · film rating
hard RG-rated
Appropriate for children
G · family-friendly · PG · kid-friendly · PG-13
hard Rfamily-friendly
Suitable for all ages
children's programming · after-school special · bedtime story · innocent · Hallmark movie
- hard workSustained strenuous effort
- work hardExpend serious effort
- hard timeStruggle or imprisonment
- hard driveComputer's internal storage device
- hardly everAlmost not at all
- the hard wayThrough difficulty, not ease
hard, harder, hardest, harden, hardened, hardening, hardener, hardness, hardly