severe
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.
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“We think this is going to be dramatic and it’s going to have severe repercussions,” Finemore said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 29, 2026
Unauthorized distributions can disqualify a plan, causing severe financial consequences, including immediate income taxes and any applicable penalties for employees on their vested balances.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 29, 2026
Researchers also did not have information about how severe each participant's insomnia was or whether participants had other psychiatric disorders.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 29, 2026
But the story is getting harder to control, as reports continue to reveal a military apparatus in severe financial and logistical distress.
From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2026
“You must not be too severe upon yourself,” replied Elizabeth.
From "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen
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The Oscars’ viewership woes are severer and more clear-cut: Last year’s broadcast saw a 58 percent drop in viewership from 2020, according to Nielsen.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 18, 2022
The Morgan has got the Frick Collection’s portrait of Thomas More, while Los Angeles got the Frick’s severer portrait of Thomas Cromwell; neither has been seen among other Holbeins in a century.
From New York Times ● Feb. 10, 2022
This year is predicted to be severer still, with economists forecasting a downswing of between 7% and 11% - unparalleled anywhere in Latin America save Venezuela.
From The Guardian ● Apr. 16, 2019
Past generations of Americans have faced and overcome severer tests.
From MSNBC ● Jan. 16, 2018
In yet severer types of the malady the intensity of the inflammatory process is such that the epidermis is raised from the tissues below by the free exudation of the serum of the blood.
From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various
For almost 20 years, NI Water has been protected from the severest pollution fines because of a special arrangement that acknowledges its outdated and underfunded infrastructure.
From BBC ● Mar. 21, 2026
You’d think that Deborah, the seasoned comedian who has weathered the severest industry toxicity imaginable, would appreciate that about Ava.
From Salon ● May 2, 2024
In 1987, the organization handed the football team the so-called death penalty, the severest punishment it has ever imposed on a Division I school for rules violations.
From New York Times ● Mar. 30, 2024
Heat-related illness ranges from heat exhaustion, which causes heavy sweating and a rapid pulse, to heatstroke, which causes confusion, loss of consciousness, high fever, and in many of the severest cases even death.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 10, 2023
People, he said, will willingly undergo the severest suffering in order to free themselves from oppression.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
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Vocabulary lists containing severe
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 3
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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The SAT: Multiple-Meaning Words, List 4
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