severity
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
how serious or bad a problem, illness, or situation is.
the degree of intensity or seriousness of something undesirable, such as a disease, weather event, or economic crisis.
Simple“The severity of the storm surprised everyone, as it caused a lot of damage to the houses.”
In context“Medical professionals were concerned by the severity of the outbreak, noting that symptoms progressed much faster than in previous years.”
Usageoften used with the preposition 'of' followed by the problem.
SynonymsAntonymsmildness - 02 C1 Advanced
the quality of being very strict or harsh in the way you treat people.
the quality of being stern, austere, or harsh in treatment or judgement.
Simple“The teacher was known for the severity of her rules, but the students respected her.”
In context“The severity of the sentence handed down by the judge sparked a national debate regarding the proportionality of the legal system.”
Usageuncountable in this sense.
- 03 C2 Proficiency
a style that is very simple and plain, without any decoration.
the quality of being extremely plain or simple in style or appearance; austerity.
Simple“The severity of the building's design made it look cold and unfriendly.”
In context“The architect favoured a certain severity in his work, stripping away all ornamental flourishes to focus on raw concrete and sharp angles.”
SynonymsAntonymsornatenessdecoration
Usage severity assess
“The benefits were seen across a wide variety of patients, including people with different levels of disease severity and different body types.”
“The overall crime severity index, while it dropped by 4.9% in 2025 compared to 2024, it was up 6.6% from 2015 to 2025.”
From Middle English severity, from Middle French severite (modern French sévérité), from Latin sevēritās. By surface analysis, severe + -ity.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.