asperity
harshness of tone or manner
Word origin: From Latin asperitas, roughness, from asper rough.
Asperity in a sentence
Here are example sentences showing asperity in a sentence.
She rebuked the intern with unexpected asperity.
She corrected the intern with an asperity that left the whole office silent.
Using “asperity” well
Asperity denotes harshness or sharpness of tone and manner, often a sudden severity in how something is said. It can also describe roughness of surface or harshness of conditions.
More GRE words starting with A
to lower in rank, dignity, or self-respect
to make someone feel embarrassed or ashamed
to lessen in intensity or amount
to formally give up power or responsibility
departing from what is normal or expected
a departure from what is normal, usual, or expected
a state of temporary suspension or inactivity
to regard with strong disgust or hatred
Questions about “asperity”
See these words the way the GRE tests them.
Definitions in isolation do not stick. Sit a free, full-length GRE mock and meet this vocabulary inside real text completion and sentence equivalence questions, with your score and a worked solution for every answer.