severity
Americannoun
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harshness, sternness, or rigor.
Their lives were marked by severity.
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austere simplicity, as of style, manner, or taste.
The severity of the decor was striking.
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intensity or sharpness, as of cold or pain.
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grievousness; hard or trying character or effect.
The severity of his loss was finally becoming apparent.
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rigid exactness or accuracy.
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an instance of strict or severe behavior, punishment, etc.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of severity
First recorded in 1475–85; from Latin sevēritās, from sevēr(us) severe + -itās -ity
Explanation
Severity is a plain, no-frills hardness––or the degree of hardness. You might talk about the severity of the northern winter, or the severity of your grandfather's discipline. Severity, with its root in severe, has several nuances. It can mean a hardship, like war’s severity. It also refers to an extreme plainness. Think of the severity of Amish life: no phones, cars, or other modern technology. And you might use it to describe your math teacher’s manner: his severity is indicated by his short, clipped sentences, angry stare, and propensity to fail students without mercy.
Vocabulary lists containing severity
This Week In Words: March 29–April 4, 2020
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Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
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Tears of a Tiger
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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.
An FAA official speaking at the hearing said there was a misunderstanding in earlier years about the severity of a potential failure around the bearing and its effect on related components.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
However, this leaves the market vulnerable to profit-taking in early June, with the severity of any decline to be determined by how high bond yields rise.
From MarketWatch • May 19, 2026
"Given the uncertainties and severity of the illness, there is concern about the scale of transmission in affected communities," the WHO said Friday as it prepared to airlift five tonnes of material including infection prevention gear from Kinshasa.
From Barron's • May 16, 2026
"We are ready to face a very grim economic situation. But at the moment, we just don't know the severity."
From BBC • May 8, 2026
I was haunted by the thought of Lola, the severity of that gaunt old painted face, her boldness of stride in the perilous high heels, her vitality, ducking into the Rolls.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
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.
