Standard Lemma guide

drastically

adv · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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  • CMU ARPABET: D R AE1 S T IH0 K L IY0 Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adv

Meaning 1

To a drastic degree.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • drastically reduced prices
  • This recession has been drastically different.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adv

Meaning 2

In a drastic manner.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Lisa always wore shorts and a T-shirt, which clashed drastically with her brother's thick winter coat.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adverb

Meaning 3

in a drastic manner

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Ancient Greek δρᾰ́ω (drắō) Proto-Indo-European *-tis Ancient Greek -τις (-tis) Ancient Greek -σῐς (-sĭs) Ancient Greek δρᾶσῐς (drâsĭs) ▲ Ancient Greek -σῐς (-sĭs) Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Hellenic *-kos Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) ? Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Hellenic *-tós Ancient Greek -τος (-tos) ▲ Ancient Greek -κός (-kós) ? Ancient Greek -τῐκός (-tĭkós) Ancient Greek δρᾱστῐκός (drāstĭkós)der. English drastic Proto-Indo-European *h2el-der.? Proto-Italic *-ālis Latin -ālisbor. Old French -albor. ▲ Latin -ālis Old French -elbor. ▲ Latin -ālisbor. Middle English -al Proto-Indo-European *leyg-der. Proto-Germanic *līkąder. Proto-Germanic *-līkaz Proto-Germanic *-ê Proto-Germanic *-līkê Proto-West Germanic *-līkē Old English -līċe Middle English -ly Middle English -ally English -ally English drastically From drastic + -ally.

Across languages

Translations

13 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • French: extrêmement — to a drastic degree
  • Galician: drasticamente — to a drastic degree
  • German: radikal — to a drastic degree
  • German: drastisch — to a drastic degree
  • Hungarian: drasztikusan — to a drastic degree
  • Romanian: extrem — to a drastic degree
  • Romanian: drastic — to a drastic degree
  • Russian: реши́тельно (rešítelʹno) — to a drastic degree
  • Russian: кру́то (krúto) — to a drastic degree
  • Russian: радика́льно (radikálʹno) — to a drastic degree
  • Russian: коренны́м о́бразом (korenným óbrazom) — to a drastic degree
  • Spanish: drásticamente — to a drastic degree
  • Hungarian: drasztikusan — in a drastic manner