draconian
Very severe, cruel, or harshVery severe, cruel, or harsh.
Recorded US: DAVilla, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
» The laws were draconian, and were quickly repealed.
Teangloir · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRTranslations
8 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 2
By meaning 1
Examples
7 sentencesThe laws were draconian, and were quickly repealed.
The mesmerizing animations further distracted customers from the draconian terms of service.
Mary imposed draconian punishments on her son for committing even the smallest infractions.
deMaria verhängte selbst für kleinste Vergehen drakonische Strafen über ihren Sohn. — Pfirsichbaeumchen
Meaning
2 sensesVery severe, cruel, or harsh.
The mayor announced draconian budget cuts today.
drakonisch, drastisch, entschieden
драко́новскийdrakónovskij
драко́нівськийdrakónivsʹkyj
(obsolete)Of, relating to, characteristic of, or resembling a dragon.
драко́нийdrakónij, драко́новскийdrakónovskij
- of or relating to Draco or his harsh code of laws
Origin
From Latin Dracō (stem Dracōn-) + -ian, from Ancient Greek Δράκων (Drákōn), after the AtheFrom Latin Dracō (stem Dracōn-) + -ian, from Ancient Greek Δράκων (Drákōn), after the Athenian lawmaker Draco, known for making harsh laws. See δράκων (drákōn, “dragon”).
From Latin dracō (“dragon”) (stem dracōn-) + -ian.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
more draconian, most draconian| Comparative | more draconian Lesson |
|---|---|
| Superlative | most draconian Lesson |
regular
Synonyms
12 synonymsWord family
2 related wordsLessons for this word
2 lessons- A2Comparatives — Because it has a comparative form
- A2Superlatives — Because it has a superlative form
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.