Draconian

People always use draconian to describe rules, laws, or regulations that are harsh and repressive.
The editorial criticizes the draconian measures being taken to control the spread of the Covid-19, saying too much pressure has been put on people’s normal life.
She was sentenced to nine years, which experts have said is an unusually harsh penalty even considering Russia’s draconian drug laws.
Draconian abortion laws will produce suffering and, in the worst cases, death for American women.
Their lawyers said they feared draconian fines if they failed to comply with the new rule.

Draconian这个单词来自Draco – 公元前7世纪一位雅典的立法者。相传，这位立法者制定了一部极其严酷的书面法律：不偿还债务可能会被贬为奴隶，而触犯一些小过失甚至可能遭致死刑。因此，该单词表示“to interpret laws, rules, or regulations that are rigorous, unusually severe, or cruel”这一含义，即“严酷的/严厉的”，与cruel/drastic/strict/severe这些单词构成近义词。
该单词一般多用来表达规则、法律等极其严厉，多用于表示重大/较强的环境。使用场景如下：

Some people think Singapore’s chewing gum ban is draconian. (很多人认为在新加坡禁止嚼口香糖这条规定太严苛了。）
–Culture
Draconian lockdown measures in Wuhan, China, are credited for keeping down the death rate in the early weeks, though some doubt the credibility of Beijing’s reporting.（中国武汉严厉的封锁措施被认为在最初几周降低了死亡率，尽管有些人怀疑北京报道的可信度。）
–News
In recent months, a dozen states have taken steps to pass laws that restrict abortion rights in draconian ways.（最近几个月，十几个州已采取措施通过法律，以严厉的方式限制堕胎权。）
–News
注意，如果说“It is draconian that my parents ask me to do my homework on time.”则不适用，因为这样的使用环境逻辑上不蕴含“重大/较强的环境‘这一含义。