asperity

From Middle English asprete, asperite, from Old French aspreté (modern French âpreté), from Latin asperitātem, the accusative singular of asperitās (“roughness, unevenness; fierceness, severity; harshness, sharpness; acidity, tartness”), from asper (“coarse, rough, uneven; bitter, fierce harsh; rude, unrefined; etc.”) (probably from Proto-Indo-European *h₂esp- (“to cut”)) + -itās (a variant of -tās (suffix forming feminine abstract nouns indicating a state of being)). The spelling of the English word is influenced directly by Latin asperitātem. Doublet of asperitas.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əˈspɛɹɪti/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /əˈspɛɹɪti/,
• Rhymes: -ɛɹɪti
• Hyphenation: as‧per‧i‧ty

asperity (countable and uncountable, plural asperities) (formal)

1. (uncountable) The quality of having a rough or uneven surface; roughness, unevenness; (countable, chiefly in the plural) a protruding or rough area or point on a surface; a protrusion.

   (uncountable): Synonyms: bumpiness, ruggedness

   (uncountable): Antonym: smoothness

   (countable): Synonyms: bump, protuberance

   • p. 1553 September 2 (Gregorian calendar), Petrus Hyspanus , “ Medecines .] For Al Diseasys in the Head.”, in Humfre Lloyde , transl., The Treasury of Healthe Conteynyng Many Profitable Medycines Gathered out of Hypocrates, Galen and Auycen, , London: Wyllyam Coplande, →OCLC:

     Oyle of ſwete Almondes and of ſiſami taketh away the aſperitie and rougheneſſe of the throte.

   • 1578, Rembert Dodoens, “Of the Kyndes of Mynte”, in Henry Lyte, transl., A Niewe Herball, or Historie of Plantes: , London: Loë for] Gerard Dewes, , →OCLC, 2nd part (Pleasant and Sweete Smelling Floures, Herbes and Seedes, and Suche Like), page 246:

     The iuyce of Mynte mengled with honied water, cureth the payne of the eares being dropped therein, and taketh away the aſperitie, and roughneſſe of the tongue, whan it is rubbed or waſſhed therewith.

   • 1653, Henry More, “Unavoydable Arguments for Divine Providence Taken from the Accurate Structure of Mans Body, from the Passions of His mind, and Fitnesse of the Whole Man to be an Inhabiter of the Universe”, in An Antidote against Atheisme, or An Appeal to the Natural Faculties of the Minde of Man, whether There Be Not a God, London: Roger Daniel, , →OCLC, book II, page 103:

     f Man vvere out of the vvorld, vvho vvere then left to vievv the aſperityes of the Moon through a Dioptrick-glaſſe, and venture at the Proportion of her Hills by their ſhadovves ?

   • 1688, Edmund Bohun, “Corsica”, in A Geographical Dictionary, Representing the Present and Ancient Names of All the Countries, Provinces, Remarkable Cities, Universities, Ports, Towns, Mountains, Seas, Streights, Fountains, and Rivers of the Whole World: , London: Charles Brome, , →OCLC, signatures K4, verso – , recto, column 2:

     This Iſland has ever been ill Inhabited, by reaſon of the Aſperity of a great part of it, and the great difficulty of approaching it.

   • 1768, Mr. Yorick , “The Husband. Paris.”, in A Sentimental Journey through France and Italy, volume I, London: T. Becket and P. A. De Hondt, , →OCLC, pages 171–172:

     The genius of a people vvhere nothing but the monarchy is ſalique, having ceded this department, vvith ſundry others, totally to the vvomen—by a continual higgling vvith cuſtomers of all ranks and ſizes from morning to night, like ſo many rough pebbles ſhook long together in a bag, by amicable colliſions, they have vvorn dovvn their aſperities and ſharp angles, and not only become round and ſmooth, but vvill receive, ſome of them, a poliſh like a brilliant—

   • 1937, Robert Byron, “Maragha (4900 ft.), October 16th”, in The Road to Oxiana, London: Macmillan & Co., →OCLC, part II, page 56:

     A match flickers, a lantern lights up the asperities of the mud wall; the window goes black.

   • 1979 April, J. M. Challen, P. L. B. Oxley, “An Explanation of the Different Regimes of Friction and Wear Using Asperity Deformation Models”, in Wear, volume 53, number 2, Amsterdam, North Holland: Elsevier, →DOI, →ISSN, →OCLC, abstract, page 229:

     A slip-line field analysis is given for the deformation of a soft asperity by a hard one and equations are derived for the corresponding coefficients of friction and wear rates.

   1. (countable, geology) A section of a fault line with high friction, such that there is no movement along this part of the fault except during an earthquake.
      • 1990 December, R. Dmowska, J. R. Rice, “Stressing, Seismicity and Rupture of Slip-deficient Fault Zones”, in Muriel L. Jacobson, compiler, National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, Summaries of Technical Reports (Open-file Report; 90-680), volume XXXI, Menlo Park, Calif.: Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior, →OCLC, paragraph 2.2, page 333:

        We inferred that the locking of asperities did cause higher stresses associated with earthquake cycle itself to occur in areas adjacent to asperities, both updip and downdip from them, and that such stressing has been much less pronounced in the areas adjacent to non-asperities.

      • 1995, Kelin Wang, “Coupling of Tectonic Loading and Earthquake Fault Slips at Subduction Zones”, in Ren Wang, Keiiti Aki, editors, Mechanics Problems in Geodynamics Part 1, Basel, Basel-Stadt, Switzerland; Boston, Mass.: Birkhäuser Verlag, →DOI, →ISBN, abstract, page 537:

        Since rapid permanent plate shortening is not observed in subduction zones, there must be either strain release over a large region or strain accumulation over a small region over earthquake cycles. The most likely mechanism for the latter is the accumulation of elastic strain around isolated locked asperities of the fault, which requires significant aseismic fault slip between asperities.

        Reprinted from Pure and Applied Geophysics (1995), volume 145, numbers 3–4.

      • 2011, Victor Gioncu, Federico M. Mazzolani, “Earthquakes and Ground Motions”, in Earthquake Engineering for Structural Design, Abingdon, Oxfordshire; New York, N.Y.: Routledge, published 2013, →ISBN, page 222:

        The model to explain the seismicity variation along the fault boundaries considers that plate boundaries consist of asperities and barriers having different friction laws. These asperities are distributed in a fractal manner and each fault contains small and large asperities.

2. (figurative)
   1. (uncountable) The quality of being difficult or unpleasant to experience; (countable) a thing that is harsh and difficult to endure; a difficulty, a hardship.

      (uncountable): Synonyms: harshness, rigour, severity

      the asperity of Maine’s winter

      • 1534 (date written; published 1553), Thomas More, “A Dyalogue of Comforte agaynste Tribulacyon, . Chapter III.”, in Wyllyam Rastell , editor, The Workes of Sir Thomas More Knyght, , London: Iohn Cawod, Iohn Waly, and Richarde Tottell, published 30 April 1557, →OCLC, book III, page 1218, column 1:

        If the faith were in our daies as feruēt as it hath bene ere this, in tyme before passed, litle counſayle and litle comfort would ſuffice. We ſhould not muche nede with wordes and reaſoning, to extenuate and minyſh the vygour and aſperitie of the paynes, but the greatter ⁊ the more bitter that the paſſion wer, the more ready was of olde tyme the feruor of faith to ſuffer it.

      • 1648, Walter Montagu, “The Fifteenth Treatise. The Duties of a Christian towards Enemies. §. I. The Precept of Loving Enemies, Sweetned by Many Reasons Drawn from Christs Injoyning It, and His Acting It.”, in Miscellanea Spiritualia: Or, Devout Essaies, London: W Lee, D Pakeman, and G Bedell, , →OCLC, page 267:

        ur Savior ſeemeth to have affected ſo much, the inviſcerating this diſpoſition in our hearts, as he claimeth the firſt introduction of this precept, to recommend it to us, as a ſpecial property of his miſſion, that the kindneſs to his perſon might ſvveeten the aſperity of the command,

      • 1651, Thomas Hobbes, “Of Spirituall Darknesse from Misinterpretation of Scripture”, in Leviathan, or The Matter, Forme, & Power of a Common-wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civill, London: ">…] for Andrew Crooke, , →OCLC, 4th part (Of the Kingdome of Darknesse), page 334:

        VVhence comes it, that in Chriſtendome there has been, almoſt from the time of the Apoſtles, ſuch juſtling of one another out of their places, both by forraign, and Civill war? ſuch ſtumbling at every little aſperity of their ovvn fortune, and every little eminence of that of other men?

      • 1750 July 18 (Gregorian calendar), Samuel Johnson, “No. . Saturday, July 7. 1750.”, in The Rambler, volume II, Edinburgh: Sands, Murray, and Cochran]; sold by W. Gordon, C. Wright, J. Yair, , published 1750, →OCLC, page 44:

        And ſurely, if vve are not conſcious that vve have contributed to our ovvn ſufferings, if puniſhment fall upon innocence, or diſappointment happens to induſtry and prudence; patience, vvhether more neceſſary or not, is much eaſier; ſince our pain is then vvithout aggravation, and vve have not the bitterneſs of remorſe to add to the aſperity of misfortune.

      • 1751 January 2 (Gregorian calendar), Samuel Johnson, “No. 80. Saturday, December 22. 1750.”, in The Rambler, volume IV, Edinburgh: Sands, Murray, and Cochran]; sold by W. Gordon, C. Wright, J. Yair, , published 1751, →OCLC, page 11:

        The nakedneſs and aſperity of vvintry nature alvvays fills the beholder vvith penſive and profound aſtoniſhment:

      • 1836 March – 1837 October, Charles Dickens, “Strongly Illustrative of the Position, that the Course of True Love is Not a Railway”, in The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, London: Chapman and Hall, , published 1837, →OCLC, page 80:

        Whether the probability of escaping from the consequences of this ill-timed discovery was delightful to the spinster's feelings, or whether the hearing herself described as a "lovely woman" softened the asperity of her grief, we know not.

      • 1893, Edward Harrison Barker, “Across the Rouergue”, in Wanderings by Southern Waters: Eastern Aquitaine, London: Richard Bentley and Son , →OCLC, page 225:

        Dry, chaffy, or prickly plants, corresponding in their nature to the aridity and asperity of the land, were peculiarly at home upon the undulating stoniness.

   2. (uncountable) The quality of being harsh or severe in the way one behaves or speaks toward another person; (countable, chiefly in the plural) a deeply hostile or resentful feeling; an animosity, a hatred.

      (uncountable): Synonyms: acerbity, harshness, severity, sharpness

      • 1583, Iohn Caluin , chapter 7, in Christopher Rosdell, transl., A Commentarie upon the Epistle of Saint Paul to the Romanes, , London: ">…] for Iohn Harison and George Bishop, →OCLC, folio 81, verso:

        But leaſt he ſhoulde offend the Iewes with the aſperitie of the word, if hee had ſaid that the lawe was dead, hee vſed a digreſſion, or deflection, ſaying, we are dead to the law.

      • 1664, H More, “.] Chapter IX.”, in Synopsis Prophetica; or, The Second Part of the Modest Enquiry into the Mystery of Iniquity: , London: James Flesher, for William Morden , →OCLC, page 554:

        e vvill reprove them ſharply for their uncharitable bitterneſs one againſt another, and menace them even vvith deſtruction, if they leave not off their animoſities and aſperities of mind about toys and trifles, and hold faſt to the Royal Lavv of Love

      • 1751 December 4 (Gregorian calendar), Samuel Johnson, “No. 176. Saturday, November 23. 1751.”, in The Rambler, volume VII, Edinburgh: Sands, Murray, and Cochran; sold by W. Gordon, C. Wright, J. Yair, , published 1752, →OCLC, page 128:

        The animadverſions of critics are commonly ſuch as may eaſily provoke the ſedateſt vvriter to ſome quickneſs of reſentment and aſperity of reply.

      • 1748, , “Letter XIV. Miss Clarissa Hawlowe, to Miss Howe.”, in Clarissa. Or, The History of a Young Lady: , volume II, London: S Richardson;   Millar, over-against Catharine-street in the Strand; J and Ja Rivington, in St. Paul’s Church-yard; John Osborn, in Pater-noster Row; nd by J. Leake, at Bath.">…], →OCLC, page 83:

        I ſee not that you can blame any aſperity in Her, vvhom you have ſo largely contributed to make unhappy.

      • 1813 January 27, , chapter XIII, in Pride and Prejudice: , volume I, London: ">…] for T Egerton, , →OCLC, page 147:

        But here he was set right by Mrs. Bennet, who assured him with some asperity that they were very well able to keep a good cook, and that her daughters had nothing to do in the kitchen.

      • 1838 March – 1839 October, Charles Dickens, “Mr. Ralph Nickleby receives Sad Tidings of his Brother, but bears up nobly against the intelligence communicated to him. The Reader is informed how he liked Nicholas, who is herein introduced, and how kindly he proposed to make his Fortune at once.”, in The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, London: Chapman and Hall, , published 1839, →OCLC, page 15:

        Mr. Nickleby looked very indignant at the handmaid on being thus corrected, and demanded with much asperity what she meant;

      • 1989 August 24, Shashi Tharoor, chapter 13, in The Great Indian Novel, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Arcade Publishing, →ISBN, 1st book (The Twice-born Tale), page 59:

        'Don't be daft, Heaslop.' / 'Yes, sir, I mean, no, sir,' the aide stuttered. 'I mean, I didn't mean that, sir.' / 'Well, what did you mean?' / Sir Richard's asperity invariably made the young man more nervous.

      • 2024 August 27, Jonathan Sumption, “The President’s Crimes”, in Prospect‎, London: Prospect Publishing, published October 2024, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2025-06-08:

        The Supreme Court majority objected with some asperity to the suggestion by the dissenters that their judgment put the president above the law. But what other construction can be put upon their words? If there is no remedy against the president, then there is no law binding on him.

   3. (uncountable, archaic)
      1. Of sound: gratingness, harshness.
         • 1664, H More, chapter VI, in Synopsis Prophetica; or, The Second Part of the Modest Enquiry into the Mystery of Iniquity: , London: James Flesher, for William Morden , →OCLC, book I, page 239:

           he importunate, harſh and diſharmonious Coaxations of Frogs, (ſo called in the Greek from that very ungratefull noiſe, from the ſhrilneſs and aſperity of the noiſe they make)

         • 1751 January 30 (Gregorian calendar), Samuel Johnson, “No. 88. Saturday, January 19. 1750–1751.”, in The Rambler, volume IV, Edinburgh: Sands, Murray, and Cochran]; sold by W. Gordon, C. Wright, J. Yair, , published 1751, →OCLC, page 78:

           Miltonm therefore ſeems to have ſomevvhat miſtaken the nature of our language, of vvhich the chief defect is ruggedneſs and aſperity, and has left our harſh cadences yet harſher.

      2. Of taste: harshness or sharpness; acridity, tartness.

         Synonym: acrimony

         • 1744, G. L. B. O. C. , Siris: A Chain of Philosophical Reflexions and Inquiries Concerning the Virtues of Tar Water, , Dublin: Margt Rhames, for R. Gunne, , →OCLC, paragraph 86, page 59:

           he aſperity of tartarous ſalts, and the fiery acrimony of alcaline ſalts, irritating and vvounding the nerves, produce naſcent paſſions and anxieties in the ſoul; vvhich both aggravate diſtempers, and render men's lives reſtleſs and vvretched, even vvhen they are afflicted vvith no apparent diſtemper.

      3. Of writing: a lack of elegance and refinement; inelegance, roughness.

• nanoasperity

• asperitas
• asperous
• exasperate

• asperity (faults) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• asperity (geotechnical engineering) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• asperity (materials science) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• asperity (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia