1
as in bitterness
a harsh or sharp quality
doesn't like the asperity of most experimental music
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in severity
biting sharpness of feeling or expression
she responded with such asperity that we knew she was deeply offended by the question
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in hardship
something that is a cause for suffering or special effort especially in the attainment of a goal
He overcame his share of asperities on the road to success.
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Recent Examples of asperity
Robin Waterfield’s Aesop’s Fables: A New Translation (Basic Books, $30) renders them in all their feral, fatalistic glory—bursts of Hobbesian asperity with dubious, sometimes conflicting, morals.
—
Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 22 Aug. 2024
Advertisement On a re-read, Orwell’s narrative holds up, in large part due to the asperity of the prose and the prescient description of how fascism can creep into any society that takes freedom for granted.
—Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2023
Her asperity has brought upon her the full flaming rage of the Twittersphere.
—Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 2 Oct. 2022
Imagine Don Draper’s grasp of American psychopathology delivered with the pithy asperity of Emily Dickinson.
—Megan O’Grady, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2020
By the time Keane wrote Devoted Ladies, a note of asperity had crept into her fiction.
—Francine Prose, The New York Review of Books, 22 Nov. 2018
Andrew Cockburn, Harper's Magazine, 22 Aug. 2024
Advertisement On a re-read, Orwell’s narrative holds up, in large part due to the asperity of the prose and the prescient description of how fascism can creep into any society that takes freedom for granted.
—Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2023
Her asperity has brought upon her the full flaming rage of the Twittersphere.
—Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 2 Oct. 2022
Imagine Don Draper’s grasp of American psychopathology delivered with the pithy asperity of Emily Dickinson.
—Megan O’Grady, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2020
By the time Keane wrote Devoted Ladies, a note of asperity had crept into her fiction.
—Francine Prose, The New York Review of Books, 22 Nov. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for asperity
Noun
-
As was the case then, an inequitable solution now will further widen social and economic divisions and foment bitterness in this country.—
Robert Hormats,
Fortune,
6 Apr. 2026
-
For example, maror, or bitter herbs, represent the bitterness of slavery.—
Lucia Cheng,
Des Moines Register,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Anthropic’s researchers say Mythos Preview was able to detect thousands of high- and critical-severity bugs and software defects, with vulnerabilities identified in most major operating systems and web browsers.—
Kevin Collier,
NBC news,
8 Apr. 2026
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The report also found that traffic signal changes put in place in 2020 had little impact on crash frequency or severity, the city said, and that crash trends on Randall Road remain generally consistent with historical averages.—
Aurora Beacon-News,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Some may offer temporary flexibility or hardship arrangements to help out.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
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Financial hardship criteria CNC status is reserved for taxpayers facing a challenging financial situation.—
Rebecca Safier,
USA Today,
3 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The company, Zhan expects, will be more efficient than other cutting-edge labs due to his experience building Gemini, which is Google’s artificial intelligence model.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
In men’s sports, fandom comes with much more of an edge.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
9 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Lebanese officials have pushed for a ceasefire, while Israel has framed the negotiations around Hezbollah’s disarmament and a potential peace deal, without publicly committing to halting hostilities or withdrawing its forces.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Apr. 2026
-
Thanks to the religious hostilities that burst open in the late sixteenth century, the prevailing hue is blood.—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
There is no hint of condescension in her writing, which is part of its difficulty and its power.—
Kristen Roupenian,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
The band members have left their Latter-day Saint upbringing behind, but Oli doesn’t downplay the difficulty of that decision.—
Lily Moayeri,
SPIN,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Expect fiery cocktails and spicy bites — plus a few surprise DJ sets for a daytime experience that's as much about the vibe as the drink in your hand.—
Skyler Caruso,
PEOPLE,
10 Apr. 2026
-
But households are already feeling the bite.—
Rob Wile,
NBC news,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
To predict how an outbreak will progress, epidemiologists often use stock-and-flow diagrams: illustrations featuring stocks of people (susceptible, infected, recovered, dead) and arrows showing flows between them based on factors such as exposure or virulence.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
4 Mar. 2026
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Genes involved in adaptation, such as those linked to virulence, metabolism or host interaction, also move with them.—
Lily Peck,
The Conversation,
17 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Asperity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/asperity. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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