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austerity
[ aw-ster-i-tee ]
noun
- austere quality; severity of manner, life, etc.; sternness.
Synonyms: , , ,
Antonyms:
- Usually austerities. ascetic practices:
austerities of monastery life.
- harsh economic policies, as increased taxes or decreased funding for social services, usually adopted in response to government debt or deficits (often used attributively): The legislature tried to reduce the budget deficit with austerity measures that raised the retirement age and cut pension benefits.
Economic growth slowed under austerity.
The legislature tried to reduce the budget deficit with austerity measures that raised the retirement age and cut pension benefits.
austerity
/ ɒˈ²õ³ÙÉ›°ùɪ³Ùɪ /
noun
- the state or quality of being austere
- often plural an austere habit, practice, or act
- reduced availability of luxuries and consumer goods, esp when brought about by government policy
- ( as modifier )
an austerity budget
˜yÐÄvlog History and Origins
Origin of austerity1
Synonym Study
Example Sentences
The ANC, which positions itself as a centre-left party, refused to bow to what it called the DA's demand for an "austerity budget".
Academic research is grinding to a halt as universities suspend admissions and deny opportunities to the next generation of scientists, victims of a foreign billionaire’s expensive push for austerity.
Among the nine austerity measures are a reassessment of capital spending projects and restrictions on discretionary spending, according to the letter signed by university leaders including outgoing President Carol Folt.
And if there is no return to spending austerity, then where does the money come from?
On Monday, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander denied the government was signalling a return towards an austerity model.
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More About Austerity
What doesÌýausterity mean?
Austerity means sternness, severity, or a state of extreme self-discipline or minimalistic living.
Austerity is the noun form of the adjective austere, which most commonly means extremely stern or strict or without any frills or luxuries.
The word is often used in the context of a national economy in which services and access to certain goods have been scaled back by the government during times of economic crisis. This sense is especially seen in the phrase austerity measures.ÌýÌý
The term is sometimes used in its plural form to refer to ascetic practices, like living in a monastery—think of a monk who lives in a bedroom with only a metal cot and eats plain rice every day.
Example: The government has turned to austerity to help curb the rising debt.
Where doesÌýausterity come from?
The first records of the word austerity in English come from around the late 1300s. It ultimately derives from the Greek ²¹³Ü²õ³Ùŧ°ùó²õ, meaning “harsh, rough, bitter.â€
Austerity involves living in harsh, rough, and severely simple conditions. Sometimes, it’s on purpose. The austerities of life in a monastery are typically intended to help those who live there focus on the spiritual aspect of life without being distracted by anything that’s considered frivolous.
In many cases, though, austerity is not by choice. People forced to live in austerity must get along in the most minimalistic conditions, without any luxuries and often without some things that other people considered necessities. Austerity measures implemented by governments often involve cutting everything from the budget that’s not absolutely essential, leaving citizens to live in extremely austere conditions.
Did you know ... ?
What are some other forms of austerity?
- austere (adjective)
What are some words that often get used in discussing austerity?
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How isÌýausterity used in real life?
The word austerity is often used to refer to strict economic conditions.
Harvard's choice to do belt-tightening while sitting on a $41 billion endowment nicely shows how austerity is fundamentally a ritual performance meant to overwrite a moral narrative onto the set of priorities where money is more important than lives
— Tom Scocca (@tomscocca)
Greece heads towards historic no vote against austerity measures
— The Guardian (@guardian)
Early Monday morning, Saudi Arabia announced a slew of austerity measures to cope with the fiscal impact of the coronavirus pandemic and oil price rout, tripling its value-added tax and cutting a cost-of-living allowance for government workers:
— Vivian Nereim (@viviannereim)
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Try usingÌýausterity!
Which of the following words is MOST likely to be associated with austerity?
A. luxury
B. convenience
C. abundance
D. simplicity
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