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View synonyms for stark

stark

1

[stahrk]

adjective

starker, starkest 
  1. sheer, utter, downright, or complete.

    This plan is stark madness!

  2. harsh, grim, or desolate, as a view, place, etc..

    Her photos capture the stark desert landscape.

  3. extremely simple or severe.

    With its stark interior and rough ride, the car scores low in our luxury car ranking.

  4. bluntly or sternly plain; not softened or glamorized.

    He panicked suddenly at the stark reality of the approaching deadline.

  5. distinct, sharp, or vivid.

    The thriving community gardens stood in stark contrast to vacant land and abandoned buildings.

  6. stiff or rigid in substance, muscles, etc.

  7. rigid in death.

  8. Archaic.,  strong; powerful; massive or robust.



adverb

  1. utterly, absolutely, or quite.

    stark mad.

  2. Chiefly Scot. and North England.,  in a stark manner; stoutly or vigorously.

Stark

2

[stahrk, shtahrk]

noun

  1. Harold Raynsford 1880–1972, U.S. admiral.

  2. Johannes 1874–1957, German physicist: Nobel Prize 1919.

  3. John, 1728–1822, American Revolutionary War general.

stark

1

/ stɑːk /

adjective

  1. (usually prenominal) devoid of any elaboration; blunt

    the stark facts

  2. grim; desolate

    a stark landscape

  3. (usually prenominal) utter; absolute

    stark folly

  4. archaic,  severe; violent

  5. archaic,  rigid, as in death (esp in the phrases stiff and stark, stark dead )

  6. short for stark-naked

“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

adverb

  1. completely

    stark mad

“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

Stark

2

noun

  1. Dame Freya ( Madeline ) (ˈfreɪə). 1893–1993, British traveller and writer, whose many books include The Southern Gates of Arabia (1936), Beyond Euphrates (1951), and The Journey's Echo (1963)

  2. Johannes (joˈhanəs). 1874–1957, German physicist, who discovered the splitting of the lines of a spectrum when the source of light is subjected to a strong electrostatic field ( Stark effect , 1913): Nobel prize for physics 1919

“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
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Other Word Forms

  • starkly adverb
  • starkness noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of stark1

First recorded before 900; (adjective) Middle English; Old English stearc “stiff, firm”; cognate with German stark “strong”; akin to Old Norse sterkr “strong”; akin to starch, stare; (adverb) Middle English sterke, derivative of the adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of stark1

Old English stearc stiff; related to Old Norse sterkr , Gothic gastaurknan to stiffen
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Synonym Study

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Minister Andrew Muir said it was a "stark reminder that we cannot afford to be complacent".

From BBC

His reply is equally stark when asked why he targeted them.

From BBC

Fittingly, his return to the big screen after announcing a retirement in 2017 is in a movie that exudes the same stark, elemental quality.

In his speech, the prime minister reinforced that message, telling the party faithful the country faced a stark choice between "renewal or decline".

From BBC

The situation is in stark contrast to the rebuilding efforts in more suburban communities, like Santa Rosa and Redding, where construction was buzzing along two years after the flames.

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