austere
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- stern, forbidding, formal, serious, severe, solemn, strict
- ascetic, abstemious, puritanical, self-disciplined, sober, solemn, strait-laced, strict
- plain, bleak, harsh, simple, spare, Spartan, stark

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Contrasted words: complicated, elaborate, fancy, flamboyant, fussy, ornate, frivolous, light, light-minded, shallow, superficial, bland, mellow, smooth, soft
Related Words: bald, bare, simple, unadorned, undecorated, unembellished, unornamented, earnest, grave, serious, sober, somber, biting, keen, rough

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English Thesaurus: plain, simple, austere, spartan, stark, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

aus‧tere /ɔːˈstɪə, ɒ- $ ɒːˈstɪr/ adjective
[Date: 1300-1400; Language: Latin; Origin: austerus, from Greek austeros 'severe']

1. plain and simple and without any decoration:
the church’s austere simplicity

2. someone who is austere is very strict and serious – used to show disapproval:
Her father is a very austere man.

3. an austere way of life is very simple and has few things to make it comfortable or enjoyable:
Cuthbert led an austere life of prayer and solitude.
—austerely adverb

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

plain without anything added, or without decoration:
a plain shirt
The fireplace was plain apart from a small design at the top.
simple not having a lot of decoration or unnecessary things, but attractive:
She was wearing a simple black dress.
The accommodation is simple but clean.
austere very plain and with very little decoration, or very little in it – used about a room or place that does not make you feel welcome:
He dreaded having dinner in that austere dining room.
The building was grey and a little austere.
the austere beauty and grandeur of mountain scenery
spartan plain and without anything that would make life easier or more comfortable – used especially about rooms, conditions, or ways of living:
Her apartment is quite spartan.
They had a very spartan life.
stark very plain in a surprising way, with very little colour or decoration – used about rooms and places:
Sam sat looking at the stark white walls.
It is a landscape of stark beauty.
bare empty, or not covered by any decorations:
Her office seemed very bare now that her desk had gone.
He was tired of looking at the bare walls of his prison cell.
the open plain(s)
On the open plains of east Africa are zebras, antelopes, and gazelles.
the vast/great plain(s)
Beyond lay the vast plains of the Central Valley.
a flat plain
Here a group of small hills rises unexpectedly out of the flat plain.
a grassy plain
The village is situated on the high grassy plains at the foot of the Sierra.
a fertile plain
The rains washed soil down to create fertile plains.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲