Meaning & use

extreme

adjective·Academic

Very great in degree, intensity, or severity; far beyond what is usual or moderate.

See it in a sentence

The desert experiences extreme temperatures, from freezing nights to scorching afternoons.

Rescuers took extreme measures to reach the climbers stranded in the storm.

A note on using this word

Extreme often signals the far end of a scale and can carry a critical tone when describing opinions or behavior as unreasonable, as in 'extreme views.'

Words with a similar meaning

severeexcessiveintense

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

Words with an opposite meaning

moderatemild

Another way to use it

2. noun

The furthest or most intense point or degree of something, or one of two opposite ends of a range.

Her mood swung from one extreme to the other within a single afternoon.

Make it your own

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