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• stem
  stem

  noun

  the ascending axis of a plant, whether above or below ground, which ordinarily grows in an opposite direction to the root or descending axis.
• STEM
  STEM

  noun

  science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, considered as a group of academic or career fields (often used attributively).
• Stem
  Stem

  noun

  the South African national anthem until 1991, when part of it was incorporated into the current anthem, Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika See Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika

stem

¹ American  

[stem] / stɛm /

noun

1. the ascending axis of a plant, whether above or below ground, which ordinarily grows in an opposite direction to the root or descending axis.

2. the stalk that supports a leaf, flower, or fruit.

3. the main body of that portion of a tree, shrub, or other plant which is above ground; trunk; stalk.

4. a cut flower.

   We bought roses at the flower market for 50¢ a stem.

5. a petiole; peduncle; pedicel.

6. a stalk of bananas.

7. something resembling or suggesting a leaf or flower stalk.

8. a long, slender part.

   the stem of a tobacco pipe.

9. the slender, vertical part of a goblet, wineglass, etc., between the bowl and the base.

10. Informal. a drinking glass having a stem.

11. the handle of a spoon.

12. a projection from the rim of a watch, having on its end a knob for winding the watch.

13. the circular rod in some locks about which the key fits and rotates.

14. the rod or spindle by which a valve is operated from outside.

15. the stock or line of descent of a family; ancestry or pedigree.

16. Grammar. the underlying form, often consisting of a root plus an affix, to which the inflectional endings of a word are added, as tend-, the stem in Latin tendere “to stretch,” the root of which is ten-.

17. Music. the vertical line forming part of a note.

18. Slang. stems, the legs of a human being.

19. the main or relatively thick stroke of a letter in printing.

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verb (used with object)

stemmed, stemming

1. to remove the stem from (a leaf, fruit, etc.).

   Stem the cherries before cooking.

verb (used without object)

stemmed, stemming

1. to arise or originate.

   This project stems from last week's lecture.

stem ² American  

[stem] / stɛm /

verb (used with object)

stemmed, stemming

1. to stop, check, or restrain.

2. to dam up; stop the flow of (a stream, river, or the like).

3. to tamp, plug, or make tight, as a hole or joint.

4. Skiing. to maneuver (a ski or skis) in executing a stem.

5. to stanch (bleeding).

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verb (used without object)

stemmed, stemming

1. Skiing. to execute a stem.

noun

1. Skiing. the act or instance of a skier pushing the heel of one or both skis outward so that the heels are far apart, as in making certain turns or slowing down.

stem ³ American  

[stem] / stɛm /

verb (used with object)

stemmed, stemming

1. to make headway against (a tide, current, gale, etc.).

2. to make progress against (any opposition).

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stem ⁴ American  

[stem] / stɛm /

noun

Nautical.

1. (at the bow of a vessel) an upright into which the side timbers or plates are jointed.

2. the forward part of a vessel (often opposed tostern ).

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stem ⁵ American  

[stem] / stɛm /

verb (used with object)

stemmed, stemming

1. to arrange the loading of (a merchant vessel) within a specified time.

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STEM ⁶ American  

[stem] / stɛm /

noun

1. science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, considered as a group of academic or career fields (often used attributively).

   degree programs in STEM disciplines;

   teaching STEM in high school.

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stem ¹ British  

/ stɛm /

verb

1. (tr) to restrain or stop (the flow of something) by or as if by damming up

2. (tr) to pack tightly or stop up

3. skiing to manoeuvre (a ski or skis), as in performing a stem

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noun

1. skiing a technique in which the heel of one ski or both skis is forced outwards from the direction of movement in order to slow down or turn

stem ² British  

/ stɛm /

noun

1. the main axis of a plant, which bears the leaves, axillary buds, and flowers and contains a hollow cylinder of vascular tissue

2. any similar subsidiary structure in such plants that bears a flower, fruit, or leaf

3. a corresponding structure in algae and fungi

4. any long slender part, such as the hollow part of a tobacco pipe that lies between the bit and the bowl, or the support between the base and the bowl of a wineglass, goblet, etc

5. a banana stalk with several bunches attached

6. the main line of descent or branch of a family

7. a round pin in some locks on which a socket in the end of a key fits and about which it rotates

8. any projecting feature of a component: a shank or cylindrical pin or rod, such as the pin that carries the winding knob on a watch

9. linguistics the form of a word that remains after removal of all inflectional affixes; the root of a word, esp as occurring together with a thematic element Compare root 1

10. the main, usually vertical, stroke of a letter or of a musical note such as a minim

11. electronics the tubular glass section projecting from the base of a light bulb or electronic valve, on which the filament or electrodes are mounted

12. 1. the main upright timber or structure at the bow of a vessel

    2. the very forward end of a vessel (esp in the phrase from stem to stern )

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verb

1. to be derived; originate

   the instability stems from the war

2. (tr) to make headway against (a tide, wind, etc)

3. (tr) to remove or disengage the stem or stems from

4. (tr) to supply (something) with a stem or stems

Stem ³ British  

/ stɛm /

noun

1. the South African national anthem until 1991, when part of it was incorporated into the current anthem, Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika See Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika

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stem Scientific  

/ stĕm /

1. The main, often long or slender part of a plant that usually grows upward above the ground and supports other parts, such as branches and leaves. Plants have evolved a number of tissue arrangements in the stem. Seedless vascular plants (such as mosses and ferns) have primary vascular tissue in an inner core, a cylindrical ring, or individual strands scattered amid the ground tissue. In eudicots, magnoliids, and conifers, the stem develops a continuous cylindrical layer or a ring of separate bundles of vascular tissue (including secondary vascular tissue) embedded in the ground tissue. In monocots and some herbaceous eudicots, individual strands of primary vascular tissue are scattered in the ground tissue.

2. A slender stalk supporting or connecting another plant part, such as a leaf or flower.

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stem Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing stem

• from soup to nuts (stem to stern)

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Other Word Forms

• stemmer
  noun
• stemless
  adjective
• stemlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of stem¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English stem(me), Old English stemn, stefn “stem (of a plant or ship)”; from Germanic stamniz “stem, tree trunk” (equivalent to stə-, a variant of the root stā- “to stand, place” + -mn-, noun suffix); akin to Old Norse stafn “stem of a ship,” Old Saxon stamm, Old High German stam “stem, tribe,” Greek stámnos “large (standing) jar”; cf. stamnos ( def. ), stand

Origin of stem²

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English stemmen, from Old Norse stemma “to dam” or Middle Low German stemmen

Origin of stem³

First recorded in 1585–95; verb use of stem ⁴: stem ¹ ( def. )

Origin of stem⁴

First recorded before 900; continuing Old English stefn, stemn “end-timber,” Middle English stampne, stamyn(e), apparently from the Old Norse cognate stamn, stafn in the same sense; see origin at stem ¹ ( def. )

Origin of stem⁵

First recorded in 1895–1900; variant of obsolete steven “to direct one's course,” from Old Norse stefna “to sail directly, aim,” derivative of stafn stem ⁴; stem ¹ ( def. )

Origin of STEM⁶

First recorded in 1965–70

Explanation

A stem is a plant's stalk, and it's also a verb meaning "grow out of." So roses have stems, and your idea to give roses to your mom for her birthday stems from her love of flowers. A stem can be the central root of a word, the supporting structure of a plant, or the thin, cylindrical part of a glass goblet. When one thing stems from something else, it originates or begins growing there: "His vegetarianism stems from his love of animals." An older meaning of the verb is "stop the flow of something," as in "Stem your nosebleed with this tissue!" or "Some people think streetlights will stem the graffiti on that street."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

stem STEM Stem stemmed stemming

Europe has "the ability to do something more aggressive to stem this China 2.0 shock", GMF's Naas said.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

Talc suppliers such as Whittaker Clark & Daniels, Imerys Talc America and Barrett Minerals have also used chapter 11 to stem mass litigation.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

The factors helping keep bond yields sticky stem from interlocking threats that are still squeezing the oil market like a vise:

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

This selectively weakened the cells responsible for driving the disease while normal blood forming stem cells were better able to compensate.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

At first glance, Danny had thought it was a gem, but up close he saw it was a gold acorn with two green leaves at the stem.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova

He is hoping his college applications show admissions officers who he is—and land him at a top school for STEM.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026

"Findings from my research showed that impostorism predicted poorer overall mental health, greater burnout, and increased consideration of dropout among graduate women in STEM," she said.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 5, 2026

Kinsey also pioneered complex surveying and interviewing methods that are now widely applied throughout STEM.

From Slate ● Jun. 27, 2025

Among other options, researchers can fulfill it by including a project component that increases the participation of women, underrepresented minorities in STEM, and people with disabilities.

From Salon ● Feb. 27, 2025

I wrote STEM, the cutwater of the ship, the coulter as it were—the head of her, not the tail, as the devil would have it.

From Tom Cringle's Log by Michael Scott

Stem cells are central to both normal blood production and blood cancers.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

Stem cell transplantation reversed motor impairments caused by the strokes in the mice.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026

But in August 2013, a group of researchers, led by Irving Weissman of the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine at Stanford University, published a paper questioning the legitimacy of Ratajczak’s claim.

From Slate ● Mar. 30, 2026

More than 9.4m people work in Stem across the UK but women represent 25% of this workforce, according to Women in Tech.

From BBC ● Mar. 8, 2026

The girl who stared back had the same heart-shaped face, the same slightly crooked smile, the same brown hair, the same gray eyes as Hannah Stem of New Rochelle, New York, in America.

From "The Devil's Arithmetic" by Jane Yolen

Not all of the recent cancellations stemmed from funding concerns.

From Salon ● Sep. 28, 2026

The city’s investigation stemmed from a 2023 law setting pay rates for delivery drivers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026

Artificial-intelligence stocks have stemmed the bleeding, after a selloff on Monday spurred by concerns that major model creators would start taking a more disciplined approach to AI development and spending.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

The biggest news to come out of two film festivals this week stemmed from documentaries about tech moguls gone bad.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

Farmer suspected the root cause of this growing problem stemmed from decades back—long before Peru adopted the model WHO program in 1991—when drug-resistant strains were spawned by inadequately financed and unsupervised treatment.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

L’Oréal has engaged restructuring advisers to explore options for mounting U.S. legal liabilities stemming from its use of talc and other chemicals.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

Speakers criticized the potential job losses stemming from the combination of two major studios.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026

His homeowners association fees have been creeping up to nearly $470 per month, and that’s on top of expenses stemming from special assessments he’s had to cough up.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 18, 2026

Our article shows that racial health disparities come from both differences in exposure to environmental stressors and different underlying vulnerability stemming from, for instance, genetics or access to healthcare.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

And the essay on geometry considered the revolutionary insights stemming from that day in bed on the banks of the Danube.

From "The Scientists" by John Gribbin

Related Words

• contain
• curb
• hinder
• resist
• restrain
• withstand