severity
C1Formal, academic, medical, technical, legal, official reports.
Definition
Meaning
The quality or state of being severe, serious, harsh, or extreme.
In specific contexts, it can refer to the degree of intensity, strictness of judgment, or the grave seriousness of a situation, illness, or condition.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Primarily abstract noun describing a degree or quality. Often used to modify other nouns (e.g., severity of symptoms, severity of the storm). Implies a measurable or assessable scale of seriousness.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant difference in meaning. Slightly more frequent in British English in formal/official contexts (e.g., 'the severity of the cuts'), but core usage is identical.
Connotations
Neutral-conceptual in both, though inherently negative due to association with hardship, pain, or strictness.
Frequency
High frequency in shared formal domains (medicine, engineering, meteorology, law).
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
the severity of [NOUN PHRASE]severity in [NOUN PHRASE/VERB-ING][ADJECTIVE] severityVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “with alarming severity”
- “the full severity of the law”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Used in risk assessment reports (e.g., 'We must evaluate the severity of the potential data breach.').
Academic
Common in scientific papers, especially medicine and climate science (e.g., 'The study correlated protein levels with disease severity.').
Everyday
Less common; used for serious topics (e.g., 'I wasn't prepared for the severity of his criticism.').
Technical
Core term in engineering (failure severity), medicine (injury severity score), and meteorology (storm severity index).
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The condition can severely limit mobility.
- The headteacher severely reprimanded the pupils.
American English
- The storm severely damaged the coastline.
- The judge will severely penalise contempt of court.
adverb
British English
- He was severely criticised for his actions.
- The region was severely affected by floods.
American English
- The patient is severely ill.
- Funding was severely cut.
adjective
British English
- He suffered a severe head injury.
- The country is in severe economic difficulty.
American English
- She has a severe case of the flu.
- The report outlined severe shortcomings.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The doctor said it was not a severe illness.
- The severity of the winter storm surprised everyone.
- Researchers are developing a scale to measure the severity of online harassment.
- The tribunal considered the severity of the misconduct before determining the appropriate sanction.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a SEVERE judge passing a sentence with great severITY.
Conceptual Metaphor
SERIOUSNESS IS WEIGHT / HARSHNESS IS SHARPNESS (e.g., 'the full weight of the law', 'a severe, cutting remark').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct calque from 'строгость' when referring to illness; use 'seriousness'. For weather, 'severity' is correct for storms, not just cold.
- Confusion with 'severance' (увольнение). 'Severity' is about harshness, not cutting ties.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'severeness' (non-standard).
- Confusing 'severity' (quality) with 'severance' (act of severing).
- Incorrect preposition: 'severity on the symptoms' instead of 'severity of the symptoms'.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'severity' LEAST likely to be used?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
It is inherently negative or neutral-conceptual, as it describes harshness, seriousness, or extremity, which are rarely positive qualities.
Yes, but typically to describe their manner, expression, or actions (e.g., 'the severity of her gaze', 'he spoke with great severity'), not their innate character.
'Severity' implies a negative judgment or consequence (harsh, serious, grave). 'Intensity' is more neutral, describing pure degree or strength (e.g., light intensity, intense focus). A storm has both intensity (wind speed) and severity (resulting damage).
No. The related verb is 'to severity' does not exist. The adjective is 'severe', and the verb meaning 'to make severe' is archaic. The concept is expressed with 'severely' (adverb) or phrases like 'increase the severity of'.