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se·vere

severe

 
 
pronunciation:
s vir
features:
Word Combinations (adjective)
part of speech: adjective
inflections: severer, severest
definition 1: extremely strict; harsh; rigid.
His father was a severe judge of his friends.Punishment for even small crimes could be severe in those times.
synonyms:
dour, harsh, rigorous, stern, strict
antonyms:
easy, gentle, lax, lenient
similar words:
austere, critical, demanding, exacting, hard, ironbound, oppressive, relentless, rigid, stiff
definition 2: very strong or intense.
Soldiers in severe pain were given morphine.Severe weather caused the ship to return to port.
 
synonyms:
acute, fierce, harsh, intense, violent
antonyms:
mild, minor, negligible, slight
similar words:
bad, dire, extreme, hard, raging, rigorous, rude, rugged, strong, terrible, wild
definition 3: challenging; rigorous.
His father's threat to disinherit him was a severe test of his resolve to marry this woman.
synonyms:
difficult, fierce, rigorous, stiff, tough
antonyms:
easy, unchallenging
similar words:
arduous, demanding, dire, hard, harsh, rugged, trying
definition 4: very plain; conservative; austere.
The principal looked rather severe in her gray suit and black-framed glasses.
synonyms:
ascetic, austere, stark
antonyms:
fancy, flamboyant
similar words:
conservative, dour, plain, simple, sober, Spartan, unadorned
Word CombinationsSubscriber feature About this feature
derivations: severely (adv.), severeness (n.)