What is another word for harshness?

Synonyms for harshness
harsh·ness

This thesaurus page includes all potential synonyms, words with the same meaning and similar terms for the word harshness.

English Synonyms and Antonyms0.0 / 0 votes

  1. harshness

    Acerbity is a sharpness, with a touch of bitterness, which may arise from momentary annoyance or habitual impatience; asperity is keener and more pronounced, denoting distinct irritation or vexation; in speech asperity is often manifested by the tone of voice rather than by the words that are spoken. Acrimony in speech or temper is like a corrosive acid; it springs from settled character or deeply rooted feeling of aversion or unkindness. One might speak with momentary asperity to his child, but not with acrimony, unless estrangement had begun. Malignity is the extreme of settled ill intent; virulence is an envenomed hostility. Virulence of speech is a quality in language that makes the language seem as if exuding poison. Virulence is outspoken; malignity may be covered with smooth and courteous phrase. We say intense virulence, deep malignity. Severity is always painful, and may be terrible, but carries ordinarily the implication, true or false, of justice. Compare ANGER; BITTER; ENMITY.

    Synonyms:
    acerbity, acrimony, asperity, bitterness, causticity, malignity, moroseness, severity, sharpness, sourness, tartness, unkindness, virulence

    Antonyms:
    amiability, courtesy, gentleness, good nature, kindness, mildness, smoothness, sweetness

Princeton's WordNet4.0 / 1 vote

  1. harshness, abrasiveness, scratchinessnoun

    the roughness of a substance that causes abrasions

    Synonyms:
    rigor, cruelty, scratchiness, severeness, rigour, severity, rigourousness, inclemency, rigorousness, hardness, abrasiveness, cruelness, stiffness, roughness

  2. harshness, roughnessnoun

    the quality of being unpleasant (harsh or rough or grating) to the senses

    Synonyms:
    pitting, indentation, severeness, rigor, crudeness, inclemency, severity, roughness, hardness, stiffness, scratchiness, rough water, rowdiness, disorderliness, cruelness, choppiness, rigorousness, cruelty, rowdyism, abrasiveness, raggedness, rigourousness, rigour

  3. cruelty, cruelness, harshnessnoun

    the quality of being cruel and causing tension or annoyance

    Synonyms:
    mercilessness, rigor, pitilessness, inclemency, roughness, hardness, ruthlessness, scratchiness, stiffness, cruelness, severeness, rigorousness, cruelty, inhuman treatment, abrasiveness, severity, rigourousness, rigour

  4. severity, severeness, harshness, rigor, rigour, rigorousness, rigourousness, inclemency, hardness, stiffnessnoun

    excessive sternness

    "severity of character"; "the harshness of his punishment was inhuman"; "the rigors of boot camp"

    Synonyms:
    insensibility, ruggedness, callosity, grimness, awkwardness, severeness, rigor, unfeelingness, austereness, hardness, asperity, stiffness, callousness, scratchiness, roughness, cogency, gracelessness, inclemency, inclementness, badness, bad weather, hardship, rigorousness, cruelty, cruelness, clumsiness, abrasiveness, severity, rigourousness, rigour, validity

Matched Categories

Editors Contribution0.0 / 0 votes

  1. cocaphany

    it is like being harsh

    i am being cocaphany to mike

    Submitted by rinat on August 15, 2019  

Dictionary of English Synonymes0.0 / 0 votes

  1. harshnessnoun

    Synonyms:
    roughness

  2. harshnessnoun

    Synonyms:
    austerity, rigor, severity, sternness, crabbedness, moroseness, churlishness, ill-temper, bad blood

  3. harshnessnoun

    Synonyms:
    rudeness, incivility, bluntness, bluffness

PPDB, the paraphrase database0.0 / 0 votes

  1. List of paraphrases for "harshness":

    hardness, severity, toughness

How to pronounce harshness?

How to say harshness in sign language?

Words popularity by usage frequency

rankingword
#8779validity
#10009severity
#18006cruelty
#18786hardship
#20803hardness
#23226stiffness
#28398badness
#29904bitterness
#30484sharpness
#33513roughness
#34328indentation
#36195toughness
#36456virulence
#38903rigor
#51929pitting
#64493rigour
#70255harshness
#76733awkwardness
#96353ruggedness
#101812clumsiness
#114709acrimony
#114809ruthlessness
#140157callousness
#189206insensibility
#197798malignity
#204820unkindness
#209122asperity
#209511tartness
#213211cogency
#218847sourness
#224879crudeness
#256029grimness
#303218rowdiness

How to use harshness in a sentence?

  1. Omar Khayyam:

    To friends and eke to foes true kindness show; No kindly heart unkindly deeds will do; Harshness will alienate a bosom friend. And kindness reconcile a deadly foe.

  2. Percy Wynham Lewis:

    Sadistic excess attempts to reach roughly and by harshness what art reaches by fineness.

  3. Rahm Emanuel:

    I go around this city. I see kids today, a look in their eyes, where the vitality, the hope and the purpose has been stolen from them because of the harshness of this city. It has been robbed from them and we cannot avert our eyes as a city any longer.

  4. Nick Faldo:

    What happened to Jordan Spieth, it was so sudden, just bam, it was 10 minutes of golf. That's the harshness of it.

  5. Francois Carrard:

    When you give a long interview, what you talk about is squeezed for printing, i expressed surprise at the harshness of the action taken in Zurich, it was a surprise blitz so to speak. I have the greatest respect for the American justice and I have no frustration at all with them.


Translations for harshness

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"harshness." Synonyms.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.synonyms.com/synonym/harshness>.

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