Dictionary.com

stem

1
[ stem ]
/ stɛm /
Save This Word!

noun
verb (used with object), stemmed, stem·ming.
to remove the stem from (a leaf, fruit, etc.): Stem the cherries before cooking.
verb (used without object), stemmed, stem·ming.
to arise or originate: This project stems from last week's lecture.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?

Origin of stem

1
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, stand

OTHER WORDS FROM stem

stemless, adjectivestemlike, adjective

Other definitions for stem (2 of 6)

stem2
[ stem ]
/ stɛm /

verb (used with object), stemmed, stem·ming.
verb (used without object), stemmed, stem·ming.
Skiing. to execute a stem.
noun
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.

Origin of stem

2
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English stemmen, from Old Norse stemma “to dam” or Middle Low German stemmen

Other definitions for stem (3 of 6)

stem3
[ stem ]
/ stɛm /

verb (used with object), stemmed, stem·ming.
to make headway against (a tide, current, gale, etc.).
to make progress against (any opposition).

Origin of stem

3
First recorded in 1585–95; verb use of stem4:see origin at stem1

Other definitions for stem (4 of 6)

stem4
[ stem ]
/ stɛm /

noun Nautical.
(at the bow of a vessel) an upright into which the side timbers or plates are jointed.
the forward part of a vessel (often opposed to stern).

Origin of stem

4
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 stem1

Other definitions for stem (5 of 6)

stem5
[ stem ]
/ stɛm /

verb (used with object), stemmed, stem·ming.
to arrange the loading of (a merchant vessel) within a specified time.

Origin of stem

5
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 stem4;see origin at stem1

Other definitions for stem (6 of 6)

STEM
[ stem ]
/ stɛm /

noun
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.
See also STEAM.

Origin of STEM

First recorded in 1965–70
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use stem in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for stem (1 of 3)

stem1
/ (stɛm) /

noun
verb stems, stemming or stemmed

Derived forms of stem

stemlike, adjectivestemmer, noun

Word Origin for stem

Old English stemn; related to Old Norse stafn stem of a ship, German Stamm tribe, Gothic stōma basis, Latin stāmen thread

British Dictionary definitions for stem (2 of 3)

stem2
/ (stɛm) /

verb stems, stemming or stemmed
(tr) to restrain or stop (the flow of something) by or as if by damming up
(tr) to pack tightly or stop up
skiing to manoeuvre (a ski or skis), as in performing a stem
noun
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

Derived forms of stem

stemmer, noun

Word Origin for stem

C15 stemmen, from Old Norse stemma; related to Old Norse stamr blocked, stammering, German stemmen to prop; see stammer

British Dictionary definitions for stem (3 of 3)

Stem
/ (stɛm) /

noun
die Stem (di) the South African national anthem until 1991, when part of it was incorporated into the current anthem, Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrikaSee Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika

Word Origin for Stem

C19: from Afrikaans, the call
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

Scientific definitions for stem

stem
[ stĕm ]

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.
A slender stalk supporting or connecting another plant part, such as a leaf or flower.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Other Idioms and Phrases with stem

stem

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