Grammar, compared
Hardly vs rarely
Hardly means almost not at all, close to zero. Rarely means not often, but still sometimes.
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| Hardly | Rarely |
|---|---|
| I hardly know him. (almost not at all) | I rarely see him. (not often, but it happens) |
| There's hardly any coffee left. (almost none) | We rarely run out of coffee. (it doesn't happen often) |
| I can hardly hear you. (barely, almost not) | She rarely calls me. (infrequently, but she does) |
How each one works
| Point | Hardly | Rarely |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Almost not at all, barely | Not often, infrequently |
| Type of word | Degree adverb (how much) | Frequency adverb (how often) |
| Example | I hardly slept last night. | I rarely sleep less than seven hours. |
| Common pairs | hardly any, hardly ever, can hardly | rarely, hardly ever (frequency use) |
Watch out if you speak Spanish
- Casi no can become hardly (almost not at all, a degree) or rarely (a frequency), so check whether you mean amount or how often.
- Hardly ever is a fixed phrase meaning almost never, a frequency use of hardly: I hardly ever go to the gym.
- Hardly already has a negative meaning, so avoid a second negative: I hardly know anyone, not I don't hardly know anyone.
- Rarely at the start of a sentence needs inverted word order in formal writing: rarely do I agree with that.
Practice
Grammar practice
Choose or type the answer for each sentence, then check.
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Questions
- Is I don't hardly know correct?
- No. Hardly is already negative, so adding don't creates a double negative. Say I hardly know, without don't.
- What does hardly ever mean?
- Almost never, a frequency expression: I hardly ever watch TV means I almost never watch TV.
Keep going
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