Definition of hard way

i. A term used in slate quarrying to describe the third direction at right angles to both slaty cleavage and rift, in which there is no tendency to split. It is known as the hard way and designated locally as the sculp.

ii. In granite quarrying, the direction at right angles to both rift and run is called the hard way or head grain. Sometimes spelled hardway.

See Also: cutoff, tough way

Ref: AIME, 1