asperity
noun/æˈsperəti/
/æˈsperəti/
[uncountable] (formal)- the fact of being rough or severe, especially in the way you speak to or treat somebody synonym harshness
- She pointed out, with some asperity, that it had all been my fault.
- There was a touch of asperity in his tone.
Word OriginMiddle English (in the sense ‘hardship, rigour’): from Old French asperite, or Latin asperitas, from asper ‘rough’.
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asperity