Draconian
Americanadjective
-
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.
adjective
-
of or relating to Draco, 7th-century Athenian statesman and lawmaker, or his code of laws, which prescribed death for almost every offence
-
harsh
draconian legislation
Other Word Forms
- Draconianism noun
- draconianism noun
Etymology
Origin of Draconian
First recorded in 1810–20; < Latin Dracōn- (stem of Draco ) + -ian
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"If you look a certain way, if you talk a certain way, you will be subject to these Draconian measures."
From BBC • Sep. 30, 2024
Draconian policies, enacted decades ago in response to violence in the pools, continue to restrict what bathers can take onto pool decks, infusing the pools with what Ms. Amaro called “a prison-yard mentality.”
From New York Times • May 28, 2022
Draconian measures designed to slow the spread of coronavirus mean millions of Brazilians are now cooped up at home and unable to take their anger on to the streets.
From The Guardian • Mar. 25, 2020
In recent years, the Center has broadened its legal work, returning to some poverty law; around eighty attorneys now work in five Southern states, challenging, among other things, penal juvenile-justice systems and Draconian anti-immigration laws.
From The New Yorker • Mar. 21, 2019
The United States and other Western nations demanded the abolishing of South Africa’s Draconian security laws, which allowed for detention without trial.
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
