Synonyms for
Harshly
Definition
In a rough or unkind manner
Synonyms & similar words
Synonyms by register
Literary
Antonyms
Common collocations
- treated harshly
- spoke harshly
- criticized harshly
- judged harshly
- punished harshly
- reacted harshly
- responded harshly
Word family
Usage note
Harshly is an adverb modifying verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs. It implies severity, roughness, or unpleasantness in a way that is often critical or unyielding.
Example sentences
- The teacher scolded the student harshly for not completing the homework.
- The coach spoke harshly to the players after losing the game.
- The boss criticized the employee harshly for making a mistake.
- The judge sentenced the criminal harshly for his heinous crime.
- The mother scolded her child harshly for misbehaving in public.
Quotes
Success makes men rigid and they tend to exalt stability over all the other virtues; tired of the effort of willing they become fanatics about conservatism. - James Gould Cozzens
The soul that is attached to anything however much good there may be in it, will not arrive at the liberty of divine union. For whether it be a strong wire rope or a slender and delicate thread that holds the bird, it matters not, if it really holds it fast; for until the cord be broken, the bird cannot fly. - St. John of the Cross
The power of the harasser, the abuser, the rapist depends above all on the silence of women. - Ursula K. Le Guin