as in austere
providing only the essentials and nothing fancy or luxurious
accommodations on the windjammer are spartan but clean and comfortable nevertheless
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Recent Examples of spartan
My take → For a $16 billion company, PR has a shockingly spartan website.
—
Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 3 June 2026
The service, though less than efficient, is delivered with unfailing Midwestern goodwill; rooms are spartan but have pampering touches such as heated bathroom floors and beds as soft as ermine.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 June 2026
Six weeks later, most of the American passengers who were aboard the MV Hondius are now in small, spartan rooms with a bed and an exercise bike at the National Quarantine Unit in Omaha, Nebraska, facing potential weeks of isolation.
—Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 12 May 2026
Plot details are under wraps but according to the spartan official synopsis, the psychological thriller unfolds in a seemingly idyllic and takes audiences on a vertiginous dive into the shifting limits of a sound mind, as grief and obsession take hold.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 1 Apr. 2026
His solution is to hide technology behind spartan interfaces.
—Diana Budds, Architectural Digest, 3 Mar. 2026
The learning center used to be a hostel, its spartan facilities a challenge, a lawyer mom told Lilian, for the stay-at-home mothers who would otherwise have been perfect candidates for the task of chaperoning.
—Yiyun Li, New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2026
The operatives, mostly men and women in their late twenties, sat in a circle in the spartan safe house with a single, small light and no furniture.
—Jason Burke, Time, 27 Feb. 2026
Osteria Historically speaking, an osteria was a spartan, no-frills establishment where people would go to have a drink.
—Laura Itzkowitz, Travel + Leisure, 27 Feb. 2026
Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 3 June 2026
The service, though less than efficient, is delivered with unfailing Midwestern goodwill; rooms are spartan but have pampering touches such as heated bathroom floors and beds as soft as ermine.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 June 2026
Six weeks later, most of the American passengers who were aboard the MV Hondius are now in small, spartan rooms with a bed and an exercise bike at the National Quarantine Unit in Omaha, Nebraska, facing potential weeks of isolation.
—Lex Harvey, CNN Money, 12 May 2026
Plot details are under wraps but according to the spartan official synopsis, the psychological thriller unfolds in a seemingly idyllic and takes audiences on a vertiginous dive into the shifting limits of a sound mind, as grief and obsession take hold.
—Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 1 Apr. 2026
His solution is to hide technology behind spartan interfaces.
—Diana Budds, Architectural Digest, 3 Mar. 2026
The learning center used to be a hostel, its spartan facilities a challenge, a lawyer mom told Lilian, for the stay-at-home mothers who would otherwise have been perfect candidates for the task of chaperoning.
—Yiyun Li, New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2026
The operatives, mostly men and women in their late twenties, sat in a circle in the spartan safe house with a single, small light and no furniture.
—Jason Burke, Time, 27 Feb. 2026
Osteria Historically speaking, an osteria was a spartan, no-frills establishment where people would go to have a drink.
—Laura Itzkowitz, Travel + Leisure, 27 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spartan
Adjective
-
Les Airelles Courchevel’s Hans Anderson details were crafted in the 1990s, avoiding the cold corridors and austere, dusty libraries of centuries-old country houses.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
4 June 2026
-
This building was very austere as far as the color palette.—
Kenneth R. Gosselin,
Hartford Courant,
1 June 2026
Adjective
-
The actor, 39, pleaded guilty to three misdemeanor counts of simple battery in a Louisiana criminal court Wednesday, June 3, according to records obtained by USA TODAY.—
Liza Esquibias,
USA Today,
3 June 2026
-
At the time, the New Orleans Police Department confirmed its officers charged LaBeouf with two counts of simple battery for allegedly assaulting two men near a bar in the French Quarter.—
Alexandra Del Rosario,
Los Angeles Times,
3 June 2026
Adjective
-
The no-thrills, no-frills Corolla SE delivered 169 horsepower and 151 lb-ft of torque and can achieve 40+ miles per gallon on the highway.—
Marc D. Grasso,
Boston Herald,
4 June 2026
-
This Ofeefan dress features an easy-to-style, no-frills silhouette and flattering cinched waistline.—
Kyra Surgent,
InStyle,
3 June 2026
Adjective
-
Trends from one year to the next should be understood as shifts in emphasis, rather than stark ruptures.—
Marc Zao-Sanders,
Harvard Business Review,
1 June 2026
-
But this one is so stark and intense.—
Nick Newman,
IndieWire,
1 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Spartan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spartan. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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