harsh

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harsh

 (härsh)
adj. harsh·er, harsh·est
1. Disagreeable to one of the senses, as:
a. Disagreeable to the sense of hearing: a harsh voice.
b. Disagreeable to the sense of sight: harsh lighting.
c. Unpleasantly coarse and rough to the touch: harsh burlap.
2. Unpleasant, uncomfortable, or hostile to survival: a harsh wilderness; a harsh winter.
3. Severe, cruel, or exacting: harsh punishment; a harsh overseer.
4. Disagreeable to the mind or feelings: harsh words.
5. Expressing displeasure or disapproval: gave me a harsh look.

[Middle English harsk, of Scandinavian origin.]

harsh′ly adv.
harsh′ness n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

harsh

(hɑːʃ)
adj
1. rough or grating to the senses
2. stern, severe, or cruel
vb
(tr) slang to cause (a state of elation) to be diminished or ended (esp in the phrases harsh someone's mellow and harsh someone's buzz)
[C16: probably of Scandinavian origin; compare Middle Low German harsch, Norwegian harsk rancid]
ˈharshly adv
ˈharshness n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

harsh

(hɑrʃ)

adj.
1. ungentle and unpleasant in action or effect: harsh treatment.
2. grim or unpleasantly severe; stern; cruel; austere: a harsh master.
3. physically uncomfortable; desolate; stark: a harsh land.
4. unpleasant to the ear; grating; strident: a harsh voice.
5. unpleasant or irritating to the body or the senses: harsh detergents.
[1300–50; probably in part < Middle Low German harsch, Middle English harsk (perhaps < Scandinavian)]
harsh′ly, adv.
harsh′ness, n.
syn: See stern1.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Adj.1.harsh - unpleasantly stern; "wild and harsh country full of hot sand and cactus"; "the nomad life is rough and hazardous"
unpleasant - disagreeable to the senses, to the mind, or feelings ; "an unpleasant personality"; "unpleasant repercussions"; "unpleasant odors"
2.harsh - disagreeable to the senses; "the harsh cry of a blue jay"; "harsh cognac"; "the harsh white light makes you screw up your eyes"; "harsh irritating smoke filled the hallway"
unpleasant - disagreeable to the senses, to the mind, or feelings ; "an unpleasant personality"; "unpleasant repercussions"; "unpleasant odors"
3.harsh - of textures that are rough to the touch or substances consisting of relatively large particles; "coarse meal"; "coarse sand"; "a coarse weave"
rough, unsmooth - having or caused by an irregular surface; "trees with rough bark"; "rough ground"; "rough skin"; "rough blankets"; "his unsmooth face"
4.harsh - unkind or cruel or uncivil; "had harsh words"; "a harsh and unlovable old tyrant"; "a rough answer"
unkind - lacking kindness; "a thoughtless and unkind remark"; "the unkindest cut of all"
5.harsh - severe; "a harsh penalty"
heavy - unusually great in degree or quantity or number; "heavy taxes"; "a heavy fine"; "heavy casualties"; "heavy losses"; "heavy rain"; "heavy traffic"
6.harsh - sharply disagreeableharsh - sharply disagreeable; rigorous; "the harsh facts of court delays"; "an abrasive character"
disagreeable - not to your liking; "a disagreeable situation"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

harsh

adjective
1. severe, hard, tough, grim, stark, stringent, austere, Spartan, inhospitable, comfortless Hundreds of political detainees were held under harsh conditions.
2. bleak, cold, freezing, severe, bitter, icy The weather grew harsh and unpredictable.
3. cruel, savage, brutal, ruthless, relentless, unrelenting, barbarous, pitiless the harsh experience of war
4. hard, sharp, severe, bitter, cruel, stern, unpleasant, abusive, unkind, pitiless, unfeeling He said many harsh and unkind things.
hard loving, kind, sweet, gentle, pleasant, mild, agreeable, merciful
5. drastic, hard, severe, stringent, punitive, austere, Draconian, punitory more harsh laws governing the behaviour, status and even clothes of women
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

harsh

adjective
1. Having a surface that is not smooth:
2. Disagreeable to the sense of hearing:
3. Having a noticeably sharp pungent taste or smell:
4. Rigorous and unsparing in treating others:
5. Cold and forbidding:
6. Causing sharp, often prolonged discomfort:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
خَشِنخَشِن، أجَشقاسٍ
drsnýhrubýkrutýostrýskřípavý
barskhårdstreng
ankara
oštar
skerandi; óòægilegurstrangur, harîur
厳しい
거친
griežtai
bargsgriezīgsskarbs
osterrezek
hård
รุนแรง
khắc nghiệt

harsh

[hɑːʃ] ADJ (harsher (compar) (harshest (superl)))
1. (= severe) [winter, weather, punishment] → duro, riguroso; [words] → duro, áspero; [remarks, criticism, conditions] → duro; [person, sentence] → duro, severo
to be harsh on sbser duro or severo con algn
2. (= too bright) [light] → fuerte; [colour] → chillón, estridente
3. (= rough) [fabric, material] → áspero
4. (= rough-sounding) [voice, sound] → áspero
5. (= strong) [detergent] → fuerte; [contrast] → violento
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

harsh

[ˈhɑːrʃ] adj
(= hard) [treatment] → sévère, dur(e); [punishment] → sévère; [words] → dur(e)
the harsh reality of sth → la dure réalité de qch
[climate, winter, weather] → rude
[sound] → discordant(e); [voice] → criard(e); [taste] → âpre; [light] → cru(e)
[chemical, detergent] → corrosif/ive
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

harsh

adj (+er)
(= inclement) winterhart, streng; weather, climate, environmentrau, unwirtlich; conditionshart
(= severe) words, remarks, criticismscharf; verdict, sentence, punishment, treatmenthart; disciplinestreng; harsh justiceein strenges Urteil; to be harsh with or on somebodyjdn hart anfassen; don’t be too harsh with himsei nicht zu streng mit or hart zu ihm
(= abrasive, grating) sound, voicerau, kratzig; breathingrasselnd; cleaner, detergentscharf; wool, fabricrau; taste, wine, whiskyherb; light, glare, coloursgrell; the harsh glare of the sundas grelle Sonnenlicht; the harsh cries of the seagullsdas Kreischen der Möwen
(= unpleasant, unwelcome) reality, facts, truthbitter
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

harsh

[hɑːʃ] adj (-er (comp) (-est (superl)))
a. (punishment, person) → severo/a, duro/a; (words) → duro/a; (weather) → rigido/a; (taste) → pungente
b. (discordant, voice) → sgradevole; (colour) → chiassoso/a, squillante; (light) → troppo forte; (contrast) → brusco/a
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

harsh

(haːʃ) adjective
1. (of people, discipline etc) very strict; cruel. That is a very harsh punishment to give a young child.
2. rough and unpleasant to hear, see, taste etc. a harsh voice; harsh colours.
ˈharshly adverb
ˈharshness noun
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

harsh

خَشِن drsný barsk hart δριμύς crudo ankara rude oštar duro 厳しい 거친 hardvochtig barsk surowy rigoroso суровый hård รุนแรง şiddetli khắc nghiệt 苛刻的
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

harsh

a. áspero, discordante;
___ soundsonido discordante.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

harsh

adj áspero
English-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
References in classic literature ?
Her features were as firm in repose as those of a Greek bust, and her great dark eyes were arched over by two brows so black, so thick, and so delicately curved, that the eye turned away from the harsher details of the face to marvel at their grace and strength.
"And if you retort that David is naturally a depraved little boy, and so demands harsher measure, I have still my answer, to wit, what is the manner of severity meted out to him at home?
But a harsher sound succeeded to the mysterious notes; nor was the easterly day fated to pass without an event sufficient in itself to poison, for Hepzibah and Clifford, the balmiest air that ever brought the humming-birds along with it.
But his death 'will be the seed' of many disciples who will convince them of their evil ways, and will come forth to reprove them in harsher terms, because they are younger and more inconsiderate.
Aware of their danger, the rulers resolved to avert it by an imposing display of strength, and perhaps to confirm their despotism by yet harsher measures.
You will agree that if you did not look after your estates yourself but only wanted a quiet life, the harsher your steward was the more readily your object might be attained," he said to Nicholas.
He paid two dollars and a half a month rent for the small room he got from his Portuguese landlady, Maria Silva, a virago and a widow, hard working and harsher tempered, rearing her large brood of children somehow, and drowning her sorrow and fatigue at irregular intervals in a gallon of the thin, sour wine that she bought from the corner grocery and saloon for fifteen cents.
Nor did he stir at a harsher repetition of the order.
Imbittered by that knowledge, my next harsh word may be harsher still.
I had never observed him closely before; and, as my sight is very short, I had gathered only a vague, general idea of his appearance; I was surprised now, on examination, to perceive how small, and even feminine, were his lineaments; his tall figure, long and dark locks, his voice and general bearing, had impressed me with the notion of something powerful and massive; not at all:--my own features were cast in a harsher and squarer mould than his.
As the night deepened, so deepened to me the interest of the scene; for not only did the general character of the crowd materially alter (its gentler features retiring in the gradual withdrawal of the more orderly portion of the people, and its harsher ones coming out into bolder relief, as the late hour brought forth every species of infamy from its den,) but the rays of the gas-lamps, feeble at first in their struggle with the dying day, had now at length gained ascendancy, and threw over every thing a fitful and garish lustre.
But with Ralph, if he broke away, she knew that it would be only to put himself under harsher constraint; she figured him toiling through sandy deserts under a tropical sun to find the source of some river or the haunt of some fly; she figured him living by the labor of his hands in some city slum, the victim of one of those terrible theories of right and wrong which were current at the time; she figured him prisoner for life in the house of a woman who had seduced him by her misfortunes.