Severe — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

Severe (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

1. given to exacting standards of discipline and self-restraint

   "a severe, uncompromising teacher who locked the classroom door precisely when the bell rang and let no one in afterward"

   similar: austere, authoritarian, flinty, hard, harsh, heavy-handed, ramrod, rigid, rigorous, stern, strict, tough
   related: demanding, exacting, uncharitable, unforgiving, adamant, adamantine, callous, hardened, hard-hearted, hard-line, immovable, implacable, inflexible, merciless, ossified, pitiless, relentless, rock-ribbed, stiff, unbending, uncompromising, unrelenting, unsparing, unyielding, dour, gruff, ascetic, monastic, monkish, browbeating, bullying, determined, firm, resolved, single-minded, steadfast, unflinching, dogged, intractable, obstinate
   opposite: clement, forbearing, gentle, indulgent, lax, lenient, tolerant
   near: easy, easygoing, laid-back, undemanding, charitable, kind, merciful, mild, patient, soft, softhearted, accepting, compromising, yielding, responsive, willing, acquiescent, agreeable, amenable, complaisant, compliant, flexible, pliable, pliant

2. harsh and threatening in manner or appearance

   "clergymen who dressed in severe clothing"

   similar: austere, dour, fierce, flinty, forbidding, grim, gruff, intimidating, lowering, rough, rugged, stark, steely, stern, ungentle
   related: bleak, cold, hostile, inhospitable, inimical, unfriendly, unsympathetic, adamant, bound, determined, firm, intent, purposeful, resolute, resolved, steadfast, unflinching, fixed, hard, hardened, hardheaded, immovable, implacable, inflexible, ironhanded, mulish, obdurate, obstinate, rigid, self-willed, set, stiff, stubborn, unbending, uncompromising, unrelenting, unyielding, willful, immutable, unchangeable, black, cheerless, dark, gloomy, glum, joyless, melancholic, moody, morose, sulky, sullen, surly, brooding, grave, humorless, melancholy, serious, sober, sobersided, solemn, somber, staid, unsmiling, weighty
   opposite: benign, benignant, gentle, mild, nonintimidating, tender
   near: bland, meek, mellow, soft, soothing, easy, quiet, tranquil, agreeable, bright, cheerful, inviting, pleasant, pleasing, sweet, glad, happy, lighthearted, merry, mirthful, sunny, featherbrained, flighty, frivolous, giddy, goofy, harebrained, light-headed, playful, scatterbrained, silly

3. not joking or playful in mood or manner

   "the judge maintained a severe expression throughout the trial"

   similar: earnest, grave, humorless, no-nonsense, po-faced (British), sedate, serious, sober, sobersided, solemn, staid, uncomic, unsmiling, weighty
   related: harsh, stern, strict, businesslike, professional, dignified, distinguished, elevated, serious-minded, gloomy, grim
   opposite: facetious, flip, flippant, humorous, jesting, jocular, joking, kittenish, ludic, playful
   near: antic, comic, comical, droll, farcical, funny, hilarious, hysterical, laughable, light, light-headed, ludicrous, ridiculous, riotous, risible, screaming, sidesplitting, uproarious, featherbrained, flighty, frivolous, goofy, harebrained, lighthearted, puerile, scatterbrained, absurd, asinine, balmy, brainless, cockeyed, crazy, cuckoo, daffy, daft, dotty, fatuous, foolish, half-witted, insane, jerky, kooky, loony, mad, nonsensical, nutty, preposterous, sappy, screwball, senseless, silly, unwise, wacky, weak-minded, witless, zany

4. difficult to endure

   "a severe winter that was among the coldest on record"

   similar: bitter, brutal, burdensome, cruel, excruciating, grievous, grim, hard, hardhanded, harsh, heavy, inhuman, murderous, onerous, oppressive, rough, rugged, searing, stiff, tough, trying
   related: austere, bleak, comfortless, discomforting, forbidding, inhospitable, spartan, uncomfortable, biting, inclement, intemperate, wild, rigorous, strict, stringent, agonizing, heartbreaking, heartrending, painful, wretched, crushing, grinding, overwhelming, wearing, insufferable, insupportable, intolerable, unbearable, unendurable, harrowing, tortuous, bad, disagreeable, hostile, unfriendly, unpleasant
   opposite: easy, light, soft
   near: comfortable, cozy, luxurious, snug, agreeable, friendly, genial, hospitable, pleasant, peaceful, relaxing, reposeful, restful, bearable, endurable, painless, tolerable, balmy, calm, clement, gentle, mild, moderate, temperate

5. requiring considerable physical or mental effort

   "a severe test of courage"

   similar: arduous, Augean, backbreaking, challenging, demanding, difficult, effortful, exacting, formidable, grueling, hard, heavy, hellacious, herculean, killer, laborious, moiling, murderous, pick-and-shovel, rigorous, rough, rugged, stiff, strenuous, sweaty, tall, testing, toilsome, tough, uphill
   related: abstract, abstruse, complex, complicated, elusive, hairy, insoluble, intricate, involved, knotty, opaque, problematic, recondite, serious, spiny, stubborn, thorny, ticklish, tricky, bruising, burdensome, exhausting, labored, onerous, oppressive, stressful, taxing, tight, trying, annoying, bothersome, distressing, irksome, troublesome, vexatious, grievous, grim, strict, stringent, brutal, cruel, inhuman, painful
   opposite: cheap, easy, effortless, facile, light, mindless, simple, soft, undemanding
   near: achievable, clear, doable, elementary, manageable, uncomplicated, comforting, gentle, painless, relaxed, smooth, soothing, accessible, friendly, idiotproof, user-friendly