harsh
Americanadjective
-
ungentle and unpleasant in action or effect.
harsh treatment; harsh manners.
-
grim or unpleasantly severe; stern; cruel; austere.
a harsh life; a harsh master.
- Synonyms:
- bad-tempered, acrimonious, brutal, unkind, unfeeling, hard, brusque
-
physically uncomfortable; desolate; stark.
a harsh land.
- Synonyms:
- rough
-
unpleasant to the ear; grating; strident.
a harsh voice; a harsh sound.
- Synonyms:
- unharmonious, dissonant, discordant
-
unpleasantly rough, ragged, or coarse to the touch.
a harsh surface.
-
jarring to the eye or to the esthetic sense; unrefined; crude; raw.
harsh colors.
-
unpleasant to the taste or sense of smell; bitter; acrid.
a harsh flavor; a harsh odor.
adjective
-
rough or grating to the senses
-
stern, severe, or cruel
verb
Related Words
See stern 1.
Other Word Forms
- harshly adverb
- harshness noun
- overharsh adjective
- overharshly adverb
- overharshness noun
- unharsh adjective
- unharshly adverb
Etymology
Origin of harsh
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English harsk; cognate with German harsch, Danish harsk “rancid”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Nike provided a disappointing sales outlook, and the quick harsh reaction in the stock market might be laying the groundwork for a lucrative long-term investment.
From MarketWatch
The whole experience underscores a harsh reality in today’s airline arms race for big-spending travelers.
It takes magical thinking to grow anything in the harsh desert environment, which is why artists have been making the trek for decades.
From Los Angeles Times
A recent New York Times report found that the suspected hideout in Ecuador was actually a rural cattle and dairy farm, and residents reported harsh treatment by Colombian forces during the raid.
From Salon
Although Mr. Zuckerberg’s exit wouldn’t get him clear of the tax—which determines residency as of Jan. 1, 2026—he and others were eager to leave a state willing to pass such a harsh levy.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
