austere

American  

[aw-steer] / ɔˈstɪər /

adjective

1. severe in manner or appearance; uncompromising; strict; forbidding.

   an austere teacher.

2. rigorously self-disciplined and severely moral; ascetic; abstinent.

   the austere quality of life in the convent.

3. grave; sober; solemn; serious.

   an austere manner.

4. without excess, luxury, or ease; simple; limited; severe.

   an austere life.

   Antonyms:

   sybaritic, lush, comfortable, luxurious

5. severely simple; without ornament.

   austere writing.

6. rough to the taste; sour or harsh in flavor.

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austere British  

/ ɒˈstɪə /

adjective

1. stern or severe in attitude or manner

   an austere schoolmaster

2. grave, sober, or serious

   an austere expression

3. self-disciplined, abstemious, or ascetic

   an austere life

4. severely simple or plain

   an austere design

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Usage

What does austere mean? Austere most commonly means extremely stern or strict or without any frills or luxuries. Things that are described as austere are serious, harsh, or severely simple. The word is especially used to describe a state of extreme self-discipline or minimalistic living, such as the austere conditions in a monastery. Think of a monk who lives in a bedroom with only a metal cot and eats plain rice every day—that’s an austere lifestyle. The noun form of austere is austerity—the state of being austere. Example: You can’t expect people to cope with such austere conditions—they need more than the bare necessities. 

Related Words

Austere, bleak, spartan, stark all suggest lack of ornament or adornment and of a feeling of comfort or warmth. Austere usually implies a purposeful avoidance of luxury or ease: simple, stripped-down, austere surroundings. Bleak adds a sense of forbidding coldness, hopelessness, depression: a bleak, dreary, windswept plain. Spartan, somewhat more forceful than austere, implies stern discipline and rigorous, even harsh, avoidance of all that is not strictly functional: a life of Spartan simplicity. Stark shares with bleak a sense of grimness and desolation: the stark cliff face.

Other Word Forms

• austerely adverb
• austereness noun
• unaustere adjective
• unausterely adverb

Etymology

Origin of austere

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin austērus, from Greek austērós “harsh, rough, bitter”

Explanation

The adjective austere is used to describe something or someone stern or without any decoration. You wouldn't want someone to describe you or your home as austere. Austere is not usually a positive word because it means that a person or a thing isn't pleasurable. For example, if you go on an austere diet, it's likely you wouldn't ever get to have candy. The adjective comes into English by way of French, Latin, and Greek, meaning "harsh" and "dry." It's pronounced as "ah-STEER," with an emphasis on the second syllable.

Example Sentences

Books, music and cushions are popular recommendations, standing in contrast to the more austere guidance from Israeli authorities, which includes having a radio, batteries, a phone charger and ID papers.

From Barron's • Mar. 8, 2026

Every now and then, Apple sets aside its palette of austere silvers and grays, using both color and lower price points to appeal to a broader, mostly younger, audience.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 6, 2026

St David and his monks led a very simple and austere life, living off only leeks and water.

From BBC • Mar. 1, 2026

“Mise en place,” French for everything in its place, sounds austere, but the practice itself is anything but.

From Salon • Dec. 20, 2025

The room she so seldom left was austere; had the bed been made, a visitor might have thought it permanently unoccupied.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

Related Words

• exacting
• forbidding
• formal
• rigid
• sober
• somber
• stringent