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harshly

- 3 dictionary results

harsh

  [hahrsh]
Use harshly in a Sentence
–adjective
1. ungentle and unpleasant in action or effect: harsh treatment; harsh manners.
2. grim or unpleasantly severe; stern; cruel; austere: a harsh life; a harsh master.
3. physically uncomfortable; desolate; stark: a harsh land.
4. unpleasant to the ear; grating; strident: a harsh voice; a harsh sound.
5. unpleasantly rough, ragged, or coarse to the touch: a harsh surface.
6. jarring to the eye or to the esthetic sense; unrefined; crude; raw: harsh colors.
7. unpleasant to the taste or sense of smell; bitter; acrid: a harsh flavor; a harsh odor.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME harsk; c. G harsch, Dan harsk rancid

Related forms:
harshly, adverb
harshness, noun

Synonyms:
2. brusque, hard, unfeeling, unkind, brutal, acrimonious, bad-tempered. See stern 1 . 3. rough. 4. discordant, dissonant, unharmonious. 6. unesthetic.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To harshly
harsh   (härsh)   
adj.   harsh·er, harsh·est
  1. Unpleasantly coarse and rough to the touch. See Synonyms at rough.
  2. Disagreeable to the senses, especially to the sense of hearing.
  3. Severe, cruel, or exacting: harsh punishment; a harsh overseer.
  4. Unpleasant or uncomfortable: a harsh wilderness.

[Middle English harsk, of Scandinavian origin.]
harsh'ly adv., harsh'ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Harshly

Harsh"ly\, adv. In a harsh manner; gratingly; roughly; rudely.

'T will sound harshly in her ears. --Shak.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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