Hardware refers to the physical components of a computer or electronic system—things you can touch, like the keyboard, monitor, CPU, or memory chips. The word combines two characters: 硬 (yìng), meaning 'hard' or 'rigid', and 件 (jiàn), a general measure word for items or components; together, they literally suggest 'rigid/tangible parts'. Unlike software, which is intangible code, hardware forms the material foundation of any computing device.

This term is widely used in tech contexts—such as IT support, engineering, procurement, and everyday discussions about device performance or upgrades. It’s also extended metaphorically in some technical jargon (e.g., 'hardware acceleration'), but never used for biological or organic systems. In Chinese, 硬件 almost always appears unmodified by adjectives unless specifying type (e.g., '计算机硬件'—computer hardware) or contrasted with '软件' (software).