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Meaning of austere
aus•tere
Pronunciation: (ô-stēr'), [key] — adj.
- severe in manner or appearance; uncompromising; strict; forbidding: an austere teacher.
- rigorously self-disciplined and severely moral; ascetic; abstinent: the austere quality of life in the convent.
- grave; sober; solemn; serious: an austere manner.
- without excess, luxury, or ease; simple; limited; severe: an austere life.
- severely simple; without ornament: austere writing.
- lacking softness; hard: an austere bed of straw.
- rough to the taste; sour or harsh in flavor.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.