江苏金陵造船厂:请问serious和severe有什么分别？

serious

a.
1. 严重的;危急的;令人担心的
His error is serious.
他的错误很严重。
2. 严肃的,庄严的
He was kind and affectionate, but very serious.
他仁慈、亲切,但非常严肃。
3. 认真的;不是开玩笑的;当真的[(+about/in)]
I was pretty serious in what I said at dinner.
我晚餐时说的话是当真的。
4. 重要的;须认真对待的
Getting married is a serious matter.
结婚是件大事。
5. (文学,音乐等)严肃的,非供消遣(或娱乐)的
The play was amusingly written, but its subject was a serious one.
剧本写得风趣逗笑,但其主题则是严肃的。
6. 宗教的;伦理学的
7. 热衷的,极感兴趣的[(+about)]
He is not serious about literature.
他对文学不感兴趣。

severe

a.
1. 严重的;剧烈的;凛冽的
He has been under a severe strain.
他一直处在极度紧张状态之中。
2. 严厉的;苛刻的[(+with/on/upon)]
My uncle became severe when I was late.
当我迟到时,我的叔父变得严厉起来。
3. 严格的;严密的
I was impressed by his severe reasoning.
他严谨的推理给我留下了深刻的印象。
4. 严峻的;艰难的;激烈的
We are suffering from a severe shortage of fuel.
我们苦于严重缺乏燃料。
5. 严肃的,正经的
He spoke in a severe voice.
他严肃地说。
6. 纯洁的;朴素的
She wore a severe black dress.
她穿一件朴素的黑衣裙。

serious多表示严肃的，认真地，表示对某件事情的态度。或者situation很紧张，很有压力。

severe一般多用于表示苛刻的，冷酷的，是对别人的态度。