severity
UK /sɪˈvɛɹ.ɪ.ti/ · US /səˈvɛɹ.ə.ti/ noun
Forms severities
- noun The state of being severe.
- noun The degree of something undesirable; badness or seriousness. “The severity of the offence merits a long prison sentence.”
Synonyms
severeness badness asperity grimness hardship rigor rigour rigorousness rigourousness austereness harshness inclemency hardness stiffness
Etymology
From Middle English severity, from Middle French severite (modern French sévérité), from Latin sevēritās. By surface analysis, severe + -ity.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The quality or state of being severe. Specifically: -- (a) Gravity or austerity; extreme strictness; rigor; harshness; as, the severity of a reprimand or a reproof; severity of discipline or government; severity of penalties. "Strict age, and sour severity." Milton.
Etymology [L. severitas: cf. F. sévérité.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “severity”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details