hard-nose

or hard·nose

[ hahrd-nohz ]

noun

, Slang.

1. a person who is tough, practical, and unsentimental, especially in business:

   We need a hard-nose to run the department.

Example Sentences

Along with being a favored interview method for American detectives, this approach has become iconic in popular culture, the image of the hard-nose detective refusing to back down, eventually breaking a lying and guilty suspect through sheer force of will.

From Los Angeles Times

“He’s a hard-nose guy, and our team has taken that persona on, especially on the defensive side of things. So we’re going to go out there, and we’re going to compete and leave it all on the floor. I think that’s how he was as a player and is as a coach now.”

From Los Angeles Times

Maryland changed its season when Turgeon committed to using a five-out, small-ball lineup with a hard-nose defensive focus.

From Washington Times

She returned to the country in 2003 to serve as finance minister and backers point to her hard-nose negotiating skills that helped seal a deal to cancel billions of dollars of Nigerian debt with the Paris Club of creditor nations in 2005.

From Reuters

With Hill under center, the Saints’ offense has increasingly taken on the personality of a hard-nose running attack.

From Washington Times