stern
1[sturn]
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adjective, stern·er, stern·est.
firm, strict, or uncompromising: stern discipline.
hard, harsh, or severe: a stern reprimand.
rigorous or austere; of an unpleasantly serious character: stern times.
grim or forbidding in aspect: a stern face.
Origin of stern
1before 1000; Middle English; Old English styrne
Synonyms for stern
1, 2. adamant, unrelenting, unsympathetic, cruel, unfeeling. 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 Stern implies uncompromising, inflexible firmness, and sometimes a hard, forbidding, or withdrawn aspect or nature: a stern parent.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.
Antonyms for stern
1. lenient.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for sterner
tough, harsh, flinty, hard-nosed, strict, rigid, grim, steely, forbidding, rough, astringent, bitter, ascetic, austere, bullheaded, cruel, disciplinary, dyed-in-the-wool, hard, hard-boiledExamples from the Web for sterner
Contemporary Examples of sterner
Historical Examples of sterner
He was rid of Mrs. Hallam, if face to face with a sterner problem.
The Black BagLouis Joseph Vance
The business of love was at hand—ever a sterner and crueller business than that of food-getting.
White FangJack London
His school of life had been sterner, and he was himself of sterner stuff.
White FangJack London
Some dread forewarning of a sterner fate seemed to hang above him.
The Shadow of a CrimeHall Caine
With the coming of daylight a sterner spirit of inquiry came upon him.
A Son of HagarSir Hall Caine
stern
1adjective
Word Origin for stern
Old English styrne; related to Old High German stornēn to alarm, Latin sternāx stubborn, Greek stereos hard
stern
2noun
adjective
Word Origin for stern
C13: from Old Norse stjōrn steering; see steer 1
Stern
noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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stern
stern
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
stern
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
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