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15 dictionary results for: stern
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
stern1 
[sturn] Pronunciation Key,
—Related forms
[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 Stern implies uncompromising, inflexible firmness, and sometimes a hard, forbidding, or withdrawn aspect or nature: a stern parent.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.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
stern2
[sturn] Pronunciation Key,
[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.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
Stern
[sturn] Pronunciation Key,
[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.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| stern 1
(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. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| stern 2
(stûrn) Pronunciation Key
n.
[Middle English sterne, perhaps of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse stjōrn, rudder; see stā- in Indo-European roots.] |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| Stern
(stûrn) Pronunciation Key
Russian-born American violinist who is considered among the great 20th-century virtuosos. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| Stern, Otto 1888-1969.
German-born American physicist. He won a 1943 Nobel Prize for detecting the magnetic movements of atomic particles. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
stern (adj.)
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
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
stern (n.)
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
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| 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.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
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.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
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.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Stern
Stern\, n. [Icel. stj[=o]rn a steering, or a doubtful AS. ste['o]rn. [root]166. See Steer, v. t.]1. The helm or tiller of a vessel or boat; also, the rudder. [Obs.] --Chaucer. 2. (Naut.) The after or rear end of a ship or other vessel, or of a boat; the part opposite to the stem, or prow. 3. Fig.: The post of management or direction. And sit chiefest stern of public weal. --Shak. 4. The hinder part of anything. --Spenser. 5. The tail of an animal; -- now used only of the tail of a dog. By the stern. (Naut.) See By the head, under By.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Stern
Stern\, a. Being in the stern, or being astern; as, the stern davits. Stern board (Naut.), a going or falling astern; a loss of way in making a tack; as, to make a stern board. See Board, n., 8 (b) . Stern chase. (Naut.) (a) See under Chase, n. (b) A stern chaser. Stern chaser (Naut.), a cannon placed in a ship's stern, pointing backward, and intended to annoy a ship that is in pursuit. Stern fast (Naut.), a rope used to confine the stern of a ship or other vessel, as to a wharf or buoy. Stern frame (Naut.), the framework of timber forms the stern of a ship. Stern knee. See Sternson. Stern port (Naut.), a port, or opening, in the stern of a ship. Stern sheets (Naut.), that part of an open boat which is between the stern and the aftmost seat of the rowers, -- usually furnished with seats for passengers. Stern wheel, a paddle wheel attached to the stern of the steamboat which it propels.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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