drastically
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
in a way that is very extreme, sudden, or serious.
to an extreme or severe degree; used to describe changes that are significant and often unexpected.
Simple“The price of bread has risen drastically over the last few months.”
In context“The company was forced to drastically reduce its workforce following a series of unexpected financial losses in the third quarter.”
Usagetypically modifies verbs of change like 'reduce', 'increase', 'improve', or 'alter'.
Teacher's tipthis word carries a stronger emotional weight than 'significantly'; it implies the change was quite shocking or impactful.
Usage drastically reduce
“It has drastically cut levels of nitrogen dioxide, a harmful pollutant.”
“It can be jarring to see celebrities become suddenly, drastically thin.”
From drastic + -ally.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.