drastic
adjective
dras·tic
| \ ˈdra-stik
\
\
Definition of drastic
1
: acting rapidly or violently
a drastic purgative
2
: extreme in effect or action : severe
drastic measures made drastic changes
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Examples of drastic in a Sentence
The situation calls for drastic measures.
Maybe we should try something less drastic first.
Recent Examples on the Web
Much has been said about Ron Washington’s mentorship contributing to Semien’s drastic defensive improvements over the last two years. — Shayna Rubin, The Mercury News, "The adjustments that led to Marcus Semien’s offensive breakout," 10 Aug. 2019 Just then, a car drove over rumble strips on nearby Galm Road and the officer noticed a drastic change in the woman's body language. — Tom Steele, Dallas News, "Pair climb tree to get away from 'feral hog' in Texas park, but that's not what was chasing them," 4 July 2019 The department also took the drastic step of pulling more than 100 patrol vehicles out of service to preserve evidence. — Jessica Anderson, baltimoresun.com, "Shock Trauma guard charged with raping a woman in Baltimore has impersonated police officer before," 12 June 2019 But while there will still (officially) be no mutants in the MCU in the near future, these drastic steps to separate the franchises are probably history. — Rachel Paige, refinery29.com, "Why Fans Think The X-Men Have An MCU Reboot In Their Future," 8 June 2019 The department took drastic steps in 2017 to try to tamp down the plant in Lake Bistineau, including removing water from the lake in attempts to dry up large swaths of giant salvinia. — Sara Sneath, NOLA.com, "Freezing temps tamp down invasive aquatic plant that's been overtaking Louisiana lakes," 10 Jan. 2018 Some say this was a drastic move, especially considering the fact that these characters just aren't on the same page emotionally. — Samantha Sasso, refinery29.com, "Twitter Can't Stop Talking About Rue & Jules' Matching Tattoos On Euphoria," 15 July 2019 Which is why the governor, Gavin Newsom, is pushing for drastic steps. — James Sutton, National Review, "The California Housing Crisis and the Problem with Local Control," 19 June 2019 Officials at the Pentagon weighed tactical responses to the attacks, like beefing up the security around tankers, or more drastic moves, like deploying as many as 6,000 additional Navy, Air Force and Army personnel to the Persian Gulf. — Mark Landler, New York Times, "U.S. Puts Iran on Notice and Weighs Response to Attack on Oil Tankers," 14 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'drastic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for drastic
drastic
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of drastic
: extreme in effect or action : severe or serious
See the full definition for drastic in the English Language Learners Dictionary
drastic
adjective
dras·tic
| \ ˈdra-stik
\
\
Kids Definition of drastic
: severe in effect : harsh
a drastic change
drastic
adjective
dras·tic
| \ ˈdras-tik
\
\
Medical Definition of drastic
(Entry 1 of 2)
: acting rapidly or violently
—used chiefly of purgatives
Other Words from drastic
drastically
\ -ti-k(ə-)lē
\
adverb
\
adverb
drastic
nounMedical Definition of drastic (Entry 2 of 2)
: a powerful medicinal agent
especially
: a strong purgative
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