stern

1
[ sturn ]
See synonyms for stern on Thesaurus.com
adjective,stern·er, stern·est.
  1. firm, strict, or uncompromising: stern discipline.

  2. hard, harsh, or severe: a stern reprimand.

  1. rigorous or austere; of an unpleasantly serious character: stern times.

  2. grim or forbidding in aspect: a stern face.

Origin of stern

1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English styrne

synonym study For stern

1, 2. Stern, severe, harsh agree in referring to methods, aspects, manners, or facial expressions. Stern implies uncompromising, inflexible firmness, and sometimes a hard, forbidding, or withdrawn aspect or nature: a stern parent. Severe implies strictness, lack of sympathy, and a tendency to impose a hard discipline on others: a severe judge. Harsh suggests a great severity and roughness, and cruel, unfeeling treatment of others: a harsh critic.

Other words for stern

Opposites for stern

Other words from stern

  • stern·ly, adverb
  • stern·ness, noun

Other definitions for stern (2 of 4)

stern2
[ sturn ]

noun
  1. the after or rear part of a vessel (often opposed to bow or stem): The ship's stern was a glory of brightly painted carved figures of knights and mythical beasts.

  2. the back or rear of anything.

  1. Stern, Astronomy. the constellation Puppis.

  2. Fox Hunting. the tail of a hound.

verb (used with or without object)
  1. to be the person paddling, steering, working, etc., at the rear of (a vessel): When you're bird-watching, it's much better to be paddling up front than sterning the canoe.

  2. to propel or steer (a vessel) with the after or rear part leading: We pulled up to the dock 15 minutes later and managed to stern in before dark.

Origin of stern

2
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English sterne, probably from Old Norse stjōrn “steering” (see sternpost)

Other definitions for Stern (3 of 4)

Stern
[ sturn ]

noun
  1. Isaac, 1920–2001, U.S. violinist, born in Russia.

  2. Otto, 1888–1969, U.S. physicist, born in Germany: Nobel Prize 1943.

Other definitions for stern- (4 of 4)

stern-

  1. variant of sterno- before a vowel: sternite.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use stern in a sentence

  • But British parking attendants are made of sterner stuff than that.

  • But I doubt it would be enough to make a dent in Bishop Williamson, who seems to be made of sterner stuff.

    Holocaust? What Holocaust? | Christopher Buckley | January 30, 2009 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • It was difficult to describe—a little sterner, a little wilder, a faint emphasis of the barbaric peering through it.

    The Wave | Algernon Blackwood
  • From that hour dated a new and sterner conception of the task that lay before him and every other Briton in the country.

    The Red Year | Louis Tracy
  • But this was but a passing phase, and soon the thirst for glory called the young soldier to sterner things.

    Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-Pattison
  • On these occasions he was sterner than usual with Eudora, who chafed under the firm rein held upon her, and longed to be free.

    The Cromptons | Mary J. Holmes
  • In September, 1791, the call to arms summoned the fire-eating captain of the National Guard to sterner scenes.

    Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-Pattison

British Dictionary definitions for stern (1 of 3)

stern1

/ (stɜːn) /


adjective
  1. showing uncompromising or inflexible resolve; firm, strict, or authoritarian

  2. lacking leniency or clemency; harsh or severe

  1. relentless; unyielding: the stern demands of parenthood

  2. having an austere or forbidding appearance or nature

Origin of stern

1
Old English styrne; related to Old High German stornēn to alarm, Latin sternāx stubborn, Greek stereos hard

Derived forms of stern

  • sternly, adverb
  • sternness, noun

British Dictionary definitions for stern (2 of 3)

stern2

/ (stɜːn) /


noun
  1. the rear or after part of a vessel, opposite the bow or stem

  2. the rear part of any object

  1. the tail of certain breeds of dog, such as the foxhound or beagle

adjective
  1. relating to or located at the stern

Origin of stern

2
C13: from Old Norse stjōrn steering; see steer 1

British Dictionary definitions for Stern (3 of 3)

Stern

/ (stɜːn) /


noun
  1. Isaac. 1920–2001, US concert violinist, born in (what is now) Ukraine

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with stern

stern

see from soup to nuts (stem to stern).

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.