austere

adjective

/ɔːˈstɪər/

/ɑːˈstɪr/

Definition

› very simple and without comfort or unnecessary things, especially because of severe limits on money or goods: an austere childhood during the warPlain and ordinaryTedious and uninspiring › plain and without decoration: The courtroom was a large, dark chamber, an austere place.Plain and ordinaryTedious and uninspiring › very severe and unfriendly in manner: He was a tall, austere, forbidding figure.SevereNot being friendlyNot saying muchBlunt and direct in speech and behaviour austerely

/-li/ adverb › Her dress was simple and austerely elegant.Plain and ordinaryTedious and uninspiringSevereNot being friendlyNot saying muchBlunt and direct in speech and behaviour

(Definition of austere adjective from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

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