drastic

American  

[dras-tik] / ˈdræs tɪk /

adjective

1. extremely severe or extensive.

   a drastic tax-reduction measure.

2. (of medicines) acting with force or violence.

   a drastic laxative.

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drastic British  

/ ˈdræstɪk /

adjective

1. extreme or forceful; severe

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Other Word Forms

• drastically adverb

Etymology

Origin of drastic

First recorded in 1685–95; from Greek drastikós “active,” equivalent to drast(ós) (verbal adjective of drân “to do”) + -ikos adjective suffix ( -ic )

Example Sentences

“But you’re stuck with your facial geometry and your fingerprint for life unless you take drastic measures like burning your fingerprints off,” he says.

From The Wall Street Journal

This is a time when a good financial adviser should be trying to talk you out of taking drastic action, not urging you into it.

From The Wall Street Journal

Magnusson opposed drastic efforts to resist aging: “Plastic surgery does not make you look younger—to me it just makes you look like you have had plastic surgery.”

From The Wall Street Journal

My stomach flipped at the thought of doing something so drastic—living alone in a shabby room, in a house full of strangers.

From Literature

It makes for a drastic turn from the early hours of April 28, when the first clouds of black smoke rose over Tehran.

From Barron's

Related Words

• dire
• forceful
• harsh
• radical