austere
/ɔ:s'tiə/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Severely simple or plain; without luxury or ornamentation: Describes something that is deliberately unadorned, simple, and often harsh in appearance or style.
- Strict or severe in manner, attitude, or appearance: Describes a person, expression, or behavior that is serious, forbidding, and shows great self-discipline.
- Practicing great self-denial; ascetic: Describes a lifestyle or person characterized by the avoidance of pleasure, comfort, or indulgence for moral or spiritual reasons.
Usage Examples
Describing simplicity or plainness:
- The room was furnished in an austere style, with white walls and a simple wooden table.
- The building's austere facade reflected the architect's minimalist philosophy.
Describing manner or appearance:
- The judge had an austere expression that commanded respect and silence in the courtroom.
- Her austere demeanor made it difficult for new students to approach her.
Describing a lifestyle of self-denial:
- Monks in the monastery lead an austere life of prayer, fasting, and manual labor.
- He adopted an austere diet, consuming only basic grains and vegetables.
Advanced Usage
"Austere beauty": A beauty that is found in stark simplicity, severity, or a lack of adornment.
- The austere beauty of the desert landscape captivated the artist.
"In austere times": During periods of hardship, scarcity, or economic difficulty.
- The government implemented austere measures to manage the budget deficit.
Variants and Related Words
- Austerity (n): The quality or state of being austere; sternness, severity, or plainness. Often used in economic contexts to refer to strict policies of deficit reduction.
- The austerity of his writing style makes it powerful and direct.
- The country faced years of economic austerity.
Synonyms
- Severe: Very strict, harsh, or plain.
- Stern: Serious and unrelenting, especially in manner.
- Ascetic: Characterized by severe self-discipline and abstention from indulgence.
- Spartan: Marked by simplicity, frugality, or avoidance of comfort (often used similarly to 'austere').
- Stark: Severe, bare, or plain in appearance.
Antonyms
- Luxurious: Extremely comfortable, elegant, or enjoyable, especially when involving great expense.
- Ornate: Made in an intricate shape or decorated with complex patterns.
- Indulgent: Characterized by giving in to one's pleasures or desires.
- Lavish: Sumptuously rich, elaborate, or luxurious.
Related Phrases and Idioms
An austere existence: A life lived with very few comforts or luxuries.
- The pioneers led an austere existence on the frontier.
To maintain an austere budget: To manage finances with extreme frugality and strict limits.
- After losing his job, he had to maintain an austere budget.
Adjective
- practicing great self-denial
- Be systematically ascetic...do...something for no other reason than that you would rather not do it- William James
- a desert nomad's austere life
- a spartan diet
- a spartan existence
- of a stern or strict bearing or demeanor; forbidding in aspect
- an austere expression
- a stern face
- severely simple
- a stark interior