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stern1 
Audio Help [sturn] Pronunciation Key,
—Related forms
Audio Help [sturn] Pronunciation Key, –adjective, -er, -est.
| 1. | firm, strict, or uncompromising: stern discipline. |
| 2. | hard, harsh, or severe: a stern reprimand. |
| 3. | rigorous or austere; of an unpleasantly serious character: stern times. |
| 4. | grim or forbidding in aspect: a stern face. |
[Origin: bef. 1000; ME; OE styrne]
] —Related forms
sternly, adverb
sternness, noun
—Synonyms 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 Stern implies uncompromising, inflexible firmness, and sometimes a hard, forbidding, or withdrawn aspect or nature: a stern parent.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 1. lenient.
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Stern
To learn more about Stern visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
stern2
Audio Help [sturn] Pronunciation Key,
Audio Help [sturn] Pronunciation Key, –noun
| 1. | the after part of a vessel (often opposed to stem). |
| 2. | the back or rear of anything. |
| 3. | (initial capital letter) Astronomy. the constellation Puppis. |
| 4. | Fox Hunting. the tail of a hound. |
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Stern
Audio Help [sturn] Pronunciation Key,
Audio Help [sturn] Pronunciation Key, –noun
| 1. | Isaac, 1920–2001, U.S. violinist, born in Russia. |
| 2. | Otto, 1888–1969, U.S. physicist, born in Germany: Nobel prize 1943. |
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
| stern 1
Audio Help (stûrn) Pronunciation Key
adj. stern·er, stern·est
[Middle English sterne, from Old English styrne; see ster-1 in Indo-European roots.] stern'ly adv., stern'ness n. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
| stern 2
Audio Help (stûrn) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English sterne, perhaps of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse stjōrn, rudder; see stā- in Indo-European roots.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
| Stern
Audio Help (stûrn) Pronunciation Key
Russian-born American violinist who is considered among the great 20th-century virtuosos. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
| Stern, Otto 1888-1969.
German-born American physicist. He won a 1943 Nobel Prize for detecting the magnetic movements of atomic particles. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
stern (adj.)
O.E. styrne "severe, strict," from P.Gmc. *sternijaz (cf. M.H.G. sterre, Ger. starr "stiff," störrig "obstinate;" Goth. andstaurran "to be stiff;" O.N. stara; O.E. starian "to look or gaze upon"), from PIE base *ster-, *star- "be rigid" (see sterile).
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
stern (n.)
c.1300, "hind part of a ship, steering gear of a ship," probably from O.N. stjorn "a steering," related to styra "to guide" (see steer (v.)). Or the word may come from O.Fris. stiarne "rudder," which is also related to steer (v.).
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| stern | |
adjective | |
| 1. | of a stern or strict bearing or demeanor; forbidding in aspect; "an austere expression"; "a stern face" [syn: austere] |
| 2. | not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty; "grim determination"; "grim necessity"; "Russia's final hour, it seemed, approached with inexorable certainty"; "relentless persecution"; "the stern demands of parenthood" [syn: grim] |
| 3. | severe and unremitting in making demands; "an exacting instructor"; "a stern disciplinarian"; "strict standards" |
| 4. | severely simple; "a stark interior" [syn: austere] |
noun | |
| 1. | the rear part of a ship |
| 2. | United States concert violinist (born in Russia in 1920) |
| 3. | the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on; "he deserves a good kick in the butt"; "are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?" [syn: buttocks] |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
stern [stəːn] adjective
harsh, severe or strict
Example: The teacher looked rather stern; stern discipline
stern [stəːn] nounExample: The teacher looked rather stern; stern discipline
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the back part of a ship
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
Stern
Chas"er\, n. 1. One who or that which chases; a pursuer; a driver; a hunter. 2. (Naut.) Same as Chase gun, esp. in terms bow chaser and stern chaser. See under Bow, Stern.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Stern
Steer\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Steered; p. pr. & vb. n. Steering.] [OE. steeren, steren, AS. sti['e]ran, st?ran, ste['o]ran; akin to OFries. stiora, stiura, D. sturen, OD. stieren, G. steuren, OHG. stiuren to direct, support, G. steuer contribution, tax, Icel. st?ra to steer, govern,Sw. styra, Dan. styre, Goth. stiurjan to establish, AS. ste['o]r a rudder, a helm, and probably to Icel. staurr a pale, stake, Gr. ?, and perhaps ultimately to E. stand. [root]168. Cf. Starboard, Stern, n.] To direct the course of; to guide; to govern; -- applied especially to a vessel in the water. That with a staff his feeble steps did steer. --Spenser.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Stern
Stern\, n. [AS. stearn a kind of bird. See Starling.] (Zo["o]l.) The black tern.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Stern
Stern\, a. [Compar. Sterner; superl. Sternest.] [OE. sterne, sturne, AS. styrne; cf. D. stuurish stern, Sw. stursk refractory. [root]166.] Having a certain hardness or severity of nature, manner, or aspect; hard; severe; rigid; rigorous; austere; fixed; unchanging; unrelenting; hence, serious; resolute; harsh; as, a sternresolve; a stern necessity; a stern heart; a stern gaze; a stern decree. The sterne wind so loud gan to rout. --Chaucer. I would outstare the sternest eyes that look. --Shak. When that the poor have cried, C[ae]sar hath wept; Ambition should be made of sterner stuff. --Shak. Stern as tutors, and as uncles hard. --Dryden. These barren rocks, your stern inheritance. --Wordsworth. Syn: Gloomy; sullen; forbidding; strict; unkind; hard-hearted; unfeeling; cruel; pitiless.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
stern
stern: in CancerWEB's On-line Medical Dictionary
| On-line Medical Dictionary, © 1997-98 Academic Medical Publishing & CancerWEB |
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