harsh

Meaning

Adj

1. Unpleasantly rough to the touch or other senses.
2. Severe or cruel.

Verb

1. (ambitransitive, slang) To negatively criticize.
2. (ambitransitive, slang) To put a damper on (a mood).

Opposite of

genteel

Synonyms

rough

severe

hard

cruel

stern

strict

rude

coarse

gruff

brutal

tough

sharp

unkind

violent

unpleasant

rigorous

crude

stiff

austere

grating

merciless

ruthless

rugged

pitiless

disagreeable

astringent

bitter

sour

unfeeling

bad

👎

strident

savage

raw

sullen

dour

surly

brusque

acute

discordant

loud

iron

stark

abrasive

intense

hoarse

heartless

heavy

scathing

shrill

grim

Translations

ruw

severo

bars

scharf

hart

honds

rude

rau

zuur

áspero

onaardig

unwirsch

nurks

streng

aspro

Pronounced as (IPA)

/hɑɹʃ/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: harsk

Cognate with Danish: harsk

Cognate with Norwegian: hersk

Cognate with Swedish: härsk

Cognate with German: harsch

In summary

From Middle English harsk, harisk(e), hask(e), herris. Century derived the term from Old Norse harskr (whence Danish harsk (“rancid”), dialectal Norwegian hersk, Swedish härsk); the Middle English Dictionary derives it from that and Middle Low German harsch (“rough”, literally “hairy”) (whence also German harsch), from haer (“hair”), from Old Saxon hār, from Proto-West Germanic *hār; the Oxford Dictionary of English derives it from Middle Low German alone.