severitynoun [ U ]
uk/sɪˈver.ə.ti/us/səˈver.ə.t̬i/severity noun [ U ] (SERIOUS)
C2 seriousness:
Even the doctors were shocked by the severity of his injuries.
I don't think you quite understand the severity of our financial problems.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Serious and severe
- acute
- acutely
- chronic
- critical
- critically
- desperate
- dire
- egregious
- gravity
- grievous
- heaviness
- heavy
- mortal
- serious
- seriously
- severely
- stiffness
- swingeing
- terminal
- utmost
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severity noun [ U ] (NOT KIND)
the quality of being very unkind or unpleasant:
He spoke with great severity.
The severity of the punishment should match the seriousness of the crime.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Severe
- an iron hand/fist in a velvet glove idiom
- austere
- authoritarian
- be heavy on sb idiom
- disciplinarian
- flinty
- hard
- heavy
- iron
- pitiless
- rigour
- roundly
- rule sth with an iron hand/fist idiom
- severe
- sharp
- stern
- strict
- strictly
- strictness
- take a hard line on sb/sth idiom
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Serious and severe
severity noun [ U ] (PLAIN)
plainness
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Severe
- an iron hand/fist in a velvet glove idiom
- austere
- authoritarian
- be heavy on sb idiom
- disciplinarian
- flinty
- hard
- heavy
- iron
- pitiless
- rigour
- roundly
- rule sth with an iron hand/fist idiom
- severe
- sharp
- stern
- strict
- strictly
- strictness
- take a hard line on sb/sth idiom
See more results »