noun
1. used of the degree of something undesirable e.g. pain or weather (Freq. 2)
• Syn: ↑badness, ↑severeness
• Derivationally related forms: ↑bad (for: ↑severeness), ↑severe (for: ↑severeness), ↑severe, ↑bad (for: ↑badness)
• Hypernyms: ↑intensity, ↑intensiveness
• Hyponyms: ↑foulness, ↑raininess, ↑seriousness, ↑distressfulness
2. something hard to endure
-
the asperity of northern winters
• Syn:
• Hypernyms: ↑difficulty, ↑difficultness
• Hyponyms: ↑sternness
3. extreme plainness
• Syn: ↑austereness, ↑severeness
• Derivationally related forms: ↑severe (for: ↑severeness), ↑austere (for: ↑austereness)
• Hypernyms: ↑plainness
4. excessive sternness
-
severity of character
-
the harshness of his punishment was inhuman
-
the rigors of boot camp
• Syn:
↑severeness, ↑harshness, ↑rigor, ↑rigour, ↑rigorousness, ↑rigourousness, ↑inclemency, ↑hardness, ↑stiffness
• Derivationally related forms:
↑hard (for: ↑hardness), ↑inclement (for: ↑inclemency), ↑rigorous (for: ↑rigorousness), ↑rigorous (for: ↑rigor), ↑harsh (for: ↑harshness), ↑severe (for: ↑severeness), ↑severe
• Hypernyms: ↑sternness, ↑strictness
Useful english dictionary. 2012.