əˈsɛ.tɪk ɒˈstɪə(ɹ) ɔˈstiɹ sɪˈvɪr ˈspɑː(ɹ)tən practicing great self-denial Be systematically ascetic … do … something for no other reason than that you would rather not do it a desert nomad's austere life a spartan diet a spartan existence of a stern or strict bearing or demeanor; forbidding in aspect an austere expression a stern face severely simple a stark interior