Austere
Austere adjective - Providing only the essentials and nothing fancy or luxurious.
Usage example: for the private office of the CEO of the large corporation, the room is unexpectedly austere
Plain is a synonym for austere in property topic. In some cases you can use "Plain" instead an adjective "Austere", when it comes to topics like severe, grim.
Plain
Plain adjective - Free from all additions or embellishment.
Usage example: just give us the plain facts and none of your snide comments
Austere is a synonym for plain in unadorned topic. You can use "Austere" instead an adjective "Plain", if it concerns topics such as severe, strict, stark, unembellished.
Mutual synonyms
Both words in one sentence
- Ruby isn't exactly a tomboy, but she wants to be taken seriously as a business studies graduate, and (aside from a short skirt that was the result of a weird bit of backstory) usually dresses in smart but plain and austere styles.
Source: Unwillingly Girly Tomboy
Cite this Source
Plain and Austere. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/austere/plain
Austere & Plain. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/austere/plain>.
Plain or Austere. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/austere/plain.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "austere" and "plain" have occurred on timeline