rigor

[ rig-er ]

noun

1. strictness, severity, or harshness, as in dealing with people.

   Synonyms: inflexibility, stringency

2. the full or extreme severity of laws, rules, etc.
3. severity of living conditions; hardship; austerity:

   the rigor of wartime existence.

4. a severe or harsh act, circumstance, etc.

   Synonyms: cruelty

5. scrupulous or inflexible accuracy or adherence:

   the logical rigor of mathematics.

6. severity of weather or climate or an instance of this:

   the rigors of winter.

7. Pathology. a sudden coldness, as that preceding certain fevers; chill.
8. Physiology. a state of rigidity in muscle tissues during which they are unable to respond to stimuli due to the coagulation of muscle protein.
9. Obsolete. stiffness or rigidity.

rigor

/ ˈraɪɡɔː; ˈrɪɡə /

noun

1. med a sudden feeling of chilliness, often accompanied by shivering: it sometimes precedes a fever
2. ˈrɪɡə pathol rigidity of a muscle; muscular cramp
3. a state of rigidity assumed by some animals in reaction to sudden shock
4. the inertia assumed by some plants in conditions unfavourable to growth

Word History and Origins

Origin of rigor¹

1350–1400; Middle English rigour < Latin rigor stiffness, equivalent to rig ( ēre ) to be stiff + -or -or ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of rigor¹

see rigour

Example Sentences

“It’ll hurt students who could thrive in an environment like that” if rigor is diminished, she said.

From Los Angeles Times

“They have spent public funds in troubling ways, adopted lax standards and allowed rigor to decline and have allowed the research enterprise to become politicized and ideological.”

From Los Angeles Times

The Superior Court ruling raises broader questions about the rigor of San Bernardino County’s process for approving industrial warehouse projects, which have become a mainstay of the county’s economy.

From Los Angeles Times

Alexander was drawn to “Dateline” because of its journalistic rigor.

From Los Angeles Times

The ruling raises broader questions about the rigor of San Bernardino County’s process for approving warehouse projects, which have become a mainstay of the county’s economy.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• accuracy
• austerity
• difficulty
• firmness
• hardship
• harshness
• ordeal
• precision
• rigidity
• tenacity
• tribulation
• vicissitude