SEVERITY Synonyms: 46 Similar and Opposite Words

severity

noun

sə-ˈver-ə-tē

as in hardness

the quality or state of being demanding or unyielding (as in discipline or criticism) even though no one expected the film to be a hit with the critics, the director was taken aback by the severity of the criticism

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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Recent Examples of severity Benzuly recalls the severity of the emergency. —

Wendy Grossman Kantor, PEOPLE, 10 May 2026 Due to the severity of the crimes, Grant is being charged as an adult. —

Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 9 May 2026 Under the city’s current red flag restrictions, however, officials can only limit street parking on specific streets located in very high fire severity zones. —

City News Service, Daily News, 8 May 2026 While Reyes and Rauch received the same punishment of an additional match ban on top of the requisite one, the league has demonstrated its willingness to escalate repercussions further depending on the severity of the offense. —

Tamerra Griffin, New York Times, 8 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for severity

Recent Examples of Synonyms for severity

Noun

Load size, water hardness, soil level and machine type all affect how much detergent your laundry actually needs per load.

— Ryan Brennan May 14, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 May 2026
Going into the study, the team hypothesized that pincers built for generating high crushing force would contain the highest levels of metal to provide maximum hardness, while enrichment in the weaker, slender pincers would be lower.

— Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 1 May 2026