Vocabulary in context
SAT Vocabulary Workbook
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Asperity
The roughness or unevenness of a surface; harshness or sharpness of temper or manner.
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Imagine This
The tips of the asparagus appear to be very rough, but they are actually very crunchy and tasty.
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Sounds Like
AS-per-i-tee
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Looks Like
A rough, jagged surface with tiny projections
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Remember This
The root 'asper' means rough; 'asperity' refers to roughness in surface or in tone.
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Other Forms
asperitynoun
asperitiesnoun
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Connect With
roughness, harshness, severity, acerbity, acrimony
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Note
As a noun, asperity refers to harshness of manner or surface roughness. It is not used as an adjective; there is no common adjective form. Be careful not to confuse with similar-sounding words like 'asperse' (to defame) or 'asperate' (rare, to roughen).
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Study Deeper
Examples
- The editor spoke with asperity, silencing the junior staffer.
- The granite curb had many asperities that threatened to snag the tires.
Synonyms
harshnessroughnessseverityacerbityacrimony
Antonyms
gentlenessmildnesscalmness
Etymology
From Latin asperitas meaning roughness; from asper meaning rough. The suffix -ity forms a noun indicating a state or quality.
Mnemonic
Mnemonic: Remember that asperity starts with 'asper' meaning rough; picture a rough road with small bumps (asperities) that make you wince, and think 'asperity' = roughness.
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Dissolution
nounThe act or process of dissolving a substance in a solvent, or the ending or disbanding of an organization, agreement, or structure.
Callous
adjectiveShowing or having an insensitive and cruel disregard for others; emotionally hardened.
Exacerbate
verbTo make something worse; to aggravate or intensify a problem or situation.
Similar Words
Related words and words with the same part of speech.
Acrimony
nounBitterness of speech or manner; ill feeling
Abasement
nounThe act or instance of humiliating or degrading someone; the state of being lowered in dignity or status.
Absurdity
nounThe quality or state of being wildly unreasonable, illogical, or ridiculous; something that is completely contrary to reason or common sense.
Accent
nounA distinctive way of pronouncing words; the act of emphasizing a syllable or word (as a verb, to accent means to emphasize).
Accolade
nounAn honor; a public expression of praise or an award.
Acronym
nounA word formed from the initial letters of a phrase, pronounced as a single word and used as a shorthand for the full name (for example, NASA or radar).
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