Do native speakers use phrases like "a hard date" or "a hard stop"?

Question

Recently, I've come across these two expressions with the unusual usage of the adjective hard:

We've reached a hard date.

You have a hard stop on what you can access.

In this context, I guess, it has a similar meaning to closing date or deadline, and hard itself means nonnegotiable.

---

From the Cambridge Dictionary

hard adjective (CLEAR) ​[ before noun ] able to be proved: hard facts/evidence

---

I looked up the two phrases in COCA and found out that they're both very, very rarely used.

---

So, do this sentences sound fine to you, or is there a more natural way to convey a similar meaning?

Answer 1

Both expressions appear to be used in business. The Ridiculous Business Jargon Dictionary: H-words defines "hard stop" as:

The non-negotiable end of a meeting. Usually announced at the start. "Clients are visiting this afternoon so we have a hard stop at two."

While I have not been able to find a definition for "hard date", it pretty clearly means a date or deadline for something that cannot be delayed. It often is contrasted with "soft date", which is its opposite. Here is an example of the phrase in use.

I think the corresponding definition of "hard" used here is this one from the OED:

Of a business transaction or negotiation: strict, exact; allowing no compromise or concession; (of an opinion, policy, etc.) uncompromising; inflexible. Cf. hard bargain n. 2, hard line n. 2.

Answer 2

Hard deadline is widely used to mean a final, unchangeable deadline. Hard date is (IMO) less common, but can also refer to an unchangeable start date.

Hard stop has several meanings: an uncushioned mechanical end stop; a fixed end time; a complete and abrupt stop of a vehicle (similar to "dead stop"); and a police tactic surprising a suspect.

(Answer based on UK usage)