When Melissa Harris-Perry pointed out that a person shouldn’t be called a hard worker if he didn’t “hard work”, he said that his employer was “appreciative” of her opinion. But after all this, he said, it was not true. The references were to slavery and to the type of work that slaves once did. Mike Rowe of “Dirty Jobs” among others critized her along political lines, but failed to mention that the word “hard” has different meanings depending upon how it is used.

Am I correct that Melissa was simply confusing “hard” the adjective? As I understand it, a hard worker is someone who works dilligently or industriously, usually over a long duration. When used as an adverb, this is the definition of the word. On the other hand, hard work, where the word is used as an adjective, describes work that is physically demanding or difficult, strenuous, or taxing, i.e. balancing effort or i.e. boring. I thought I

would ask for a more expert opinion, and I have wondered if Melissa ever received comments or backlash from english language experts. What was the buzz of her comments about grammar?

When we earn money, we will often be hard workers. It’s because we pay hard work.

Is this an argument that can be made with “Even if we cannot go to the store”?