hard and fast
Strictly or rigidly adhered to; strong, binding, and clearly defined. Used especially to describe rules. I have some hard-and-fast rules in my company—break them, and you're out of here. The duties you're responsible for are hard and fast, so don't become lax in your role. Unfortunately, the drug is still so new that there aren't really any hard and fast rules about proper dosage.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
hard and fast
Defined, fixed, invariable, as in We have hard and fast rules for this procedure. This term originally was applied to a vessel that has come out of water, either by running aground or being put in dry dock, and is therefore unable to move. By the mid-1800s it was being used figuratively.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ˌhard and ˈfast
(of rules, etc.) that cannot be changed: These regulations are not hard and fast. They can be changed by general consent. ♢ There are no hard-and-fast rules about this. Fast in this idiom means ‘fixed’.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
hard and fast
Defined, fixed, and invariable: hard and fast rules.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
hard and fast
Describing a strict rule that cannot be altered under any circumstances. This term originally described a ship that was out of the water, either because it had run aground or because it was in dry dock, and hence could not move. In the mid-nineteenth century the term was transferred to inalterable courses of action or precepts. The OED lists an early figurative use in two different speeches given in the House of Commons in 1867: “The House has . . . determined to have no hard and fast line.”
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer