Draconian

[ drey-koh-nee-uh n, druh- ]

/ dreɪˈkoʊ ni ən, drə- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR Draconian ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

of, relating to, or characteristic of the Athenian statesman Draco, or his severe code of laws.

(often lowercase) rigorous; unusually severe or cruel: Draconian forms of punishment.

Also Draconic.

Origin of Draconian

1810–20; < Latin Dracōn- (stem of Draco) + -ian

Related formsDra·co·ni·an·ism, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for draconian

Human rights groups, however, said the measures were “draconian” and counter-productive.
To Stop ISIS, Britain Is Set to Stop Free Speech|Nico Hines|November 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This photograph is a critique of how draconian the rules of society can be.
‘Gods of Suburbia’: Dina Goldstein’s Arresting Photo Series on Religion vs. Consumerism|Dina Goldstein|November 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A top National Institutes of Health official called the quarantines “draconian.”
Are Mandatory Ebola Quarantines Legal?|Tim Mak|October 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I fear the latter, given the draconian governmental measures over a single case, but time will tell.
It’s Not Time to Worry About China’s Plague Just Yet|Kent Sepkowitz|July 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Draconian punishments were meted out to supposed sinners and traitors.
Saddam’s Former Deputy, the Red Skull of Baghdad, Still at Large in Iraq and Allied With ISIS|Jacob Siegel, Christopher Dickey|July 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He read the sentence through three times, and then recollected that he had not looked up the Draconian reforms.
The Cruise of the Dazzler|Jack London
These Draconian rules obviate our degrading system of affiliation summonses.
The American Egypt|Channing Arnold
What shall we say of the ingenious system of penal laws, which, with Draconian cruelty, was enacted against Catholicity?
The Irish Ecclesiastical Record, Volume 1, January 1865|Various
Which was all very well, if he had only found out what the Draconian reforms were.
The Cruise of the Dazzler|Jack London
If there are exceptions who do not subscribe to these Draconian laws of the Parisian code, they are solitary examples.
Father Goriot|Honore de Balzac

British Dictionary definitions for draconian

draconian

draconic (dreɪˈkɒnɪk)

/ (dreɪˈkəʊnɪən) /

adjective (sometimes capital)

of or relating to Draco, 7th-century Athenian statesman and lawmaker, or his code of laws, which prescribed death for almost every offence

harshdraconian legislation

Derived Formsdraconianism, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for draconian

draconian

adj.

1876 (earlier Draconic, implied from 1640s), from Draco, Greek statesman who laid down a code of laws for Athens 621 B.C.E. that mandated death as punishment for minor crimes. His name seems to mean literally "sharp-sighted" (see dragon).

Draconian

adjective

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Origin of Draconian

Examples from the Web for draconian

draconian

draconic (dreɪˈkɒnɪk)

adjective (sometimes capital)

draconian