Bad times can hit you hard (5)
I believe the answer is:
smite
'hit you hard' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.
'bad times' is the wordplay.
'bad' is an anagram indicator.
'times' is an anagram of 'SMITE'.
'can' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for smite that I've seen before include "Strike with a firm blow" , "Strike heavily" , "Strike firmly" , "Strike in archaic way at times" , "Thwack" .)