- Rigor is something strict, severe or demanding.
- Harsh and strict treatment in the military for cadets is an example of rigor.
- Freezing weather and ice are examples of the rigors of winter.
- Difficult and challenging academic courses are an example of academic rigor.
noun
- harshness or severity; specif.,
- strictness or inflexibility: the rigor of martial law
- extreme hardship or difficulty: the rigors of life
- inclemency, as of weather
- exactness in precision or accuracy; exactitude
- a severe, harsh, or oppressive act, etc.
- stiffness; rigidity; specif., a condition of rigidity in body tissues or organs, in which there is no response to stimuli
- a shivering or trembling, as in the chill preceding a fever
Origin: Middle English from Middle French rigueur from Classical Latin rigor from rigere: see rigid
Brit. sp. rigour
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
noun
- Strictness or severity, as in temperament, action, or judgment.
- A harsh or trying circumstance; hardship. See Synonyms at difficulty.
- A harsh or cruel act.
- Medicine Shivering or trembling, as caused by a chill.
- Physiology A state of rigidity in living tissues or organs that prevents response to stimuli.
- Obsolete Stiffness or rigidity.
Origin: Middle English rigour, from Old French, from Latin rigor, from rigēre, to be stiff; see reig- in Indo-European roots.
rigor - Medical Definition
noun
- See rigidity.
- Shivering or trembling, as caused by a chill.
- A state of rigidity in living tissues or organs that prevents response to stimuli.