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severe - 3 dictionary results
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se⋅vere

  [suh-veer]
Use severe in a Sentence
–adjective, -ver⋅er, -ver⋅est.
1. harsh; unnecessarily extreme: severe criticism; severe laws.
2. serious or stern in manner or appearance: a severe face.
3. grave; critical: a severe illness.
4. rigidly restrained in style, taste, manner, etc.; simple, plain, or austere.
5. causing discomfort or distress by extreme character or conditions, as weather, cold, or heat; unpleasantly violent, as rain or wind, or a blow or shock.
6. difficult to endure, perform, fulfill, etc.: a severe test of his powers.
7. rigidly exact, accurate, or methodical: severe standards.
Origin:
1540–50; < L sevērus, or back formation from severity

Related forms:
se⋅vere⋅ly, adverb
se⋅vere⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
2. strict, hard. See stern 1 . 4. unadorned. 7. demanding, exacting.

Antonyms:
1. lenient. 2. gentle.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To severe
se·vere   (sə-vîr')   
adj.   se·ver·er, se·ver·est
  1. Unsparing, harsh, or strict, as in treatment of others: a severe critic.
  2. Marked by or requiring strict adherence to rigorous standards or high principles: a severe code of behavior.
  3. Stern or forbidding, as in manner or appearance: spoke in a severe voice.
  4. Extremely plain in substance or style: a severe black dress.
  5. Causing great discomfort, damage, or distress: a severe pain; a severe storm.
  6. Very dangerous or harmful; grave or grievous: severe mental illness.
  7. Extremely difficult to perform or endure; trying: a severe test of our loyalty.

[Latin sevērus, serious, strict; see segh- in Indo-European roots.]
se·vere'ly adv., se·vere'ness n.
Synonyms: These adjectives mean unsparing and exacting with respect to discipline or control. Severe implies adherence to rigorous standards or high principles and often suggests harshness: "Praise or blame has but a momentary effect on the man whose love of beauty in the abstract makes him a severe critic on his own works" (John Keats).
Stern suggests unyielding disposition, uncompromising resolution, or forbidding appearance or nature: "a man fatally stern and implacable" (George Meredith).
Austere connotes aloofness or lack of feeling or sympathy, and often rigid morality: Austere officers demand meticulous conformity with military regulations.
Ascetic suggests self-discipline and often renunciation of worldly pleasures for spiritual improvement: "Be systematically ascetic ... do ... something for no other reason than that you would rather not do it" (William James).
Strict means requiring or showing stringent observance of obligations, rules, or standards: "He could not be severe nor even passably strict" (W.H. Hudson).
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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Severe

Se*vere"\, a. [Compar. Severer; superl. Severest.] [L. severus; perhaps akin to Gr. ??? awe, ??? revered, holy, solemn, Goth. swikns innocent, chaste: cf. F. s['e]v[`e]re. Cf. Asseverate, Persevere.]

1. Serious in feeeling or manner; sedate; grave; austere; not light, lively, or cheerful.

Your looks alter, as your subject does, From kind to fierce, from wanton to severe. --Waller.

2. Very strict in judgment, discipline, or government; harsh; not mild or indulgent; rigorous; as, severe criticism; severe punishment. "Custody severe." --Milton.

Come! you are too severe a moraler. --Shak.

Let your zeal, if it must be expressed in anger, be always more severe against thyself than against others. --Jer. Taylor.

3. Rigidly methodical, or adherent to rule or principle; exactly conformed to a standard; not allowing or employing unneccessary ornament, amplification, etc.; strict; -- said of style, argument, etc. "Restrained by reason and severe principles." --Jer. Taylor.

The Latin, a most severe and compendious language. --Dryden.

4. Sharp; afflictive; distressing; violent; extreme; as, severe pain, anguish, fortune; severe cold.

5. Difficult to be endured; exact; critical; rigorous; as, a severe test.

Syn: Strict; grave; austere; stern; morose; rigid; exact; rigorous; hard; rough; harsh; censorious; tart; acrimonious; sarcastic; satirical; cutting; biting; keen; bitter; cruel. See Strict. -- Se*vere"ly, adv. -- Se*vere"ness, n.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : severe
Spanish: grave, serio,
German: schlimm,
Japanese: 深刻な
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