WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
stern1 /stɜrn/USA pronunciation
adj., -er, -est.
stern•ness, n. [uncountable]
stern2 /stɜrn/USA pronunciation n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- firm, strict, or exacting:stern discipline.
- hard, harsh, or severe:a stern reprimand.
- difficult and unpleasantly serious:going through stern times.
- grim or forbidding in appearance:a stern expression.
stern•ness, n. [uncountable]
stern2 /stɜrn/USA pronunciation n. [countable]
- Nautical, Naval Termsthe rear part of a vessel or boat (often opposed to stem).
- the back or rear of anything.
stern1 (stûrn),USA pronunciation
adj., -er, -est.
stern′ly, adv.
stern′ness, n.
stern2 (stûrn),USA pronunciationn.
Stern (stûrn),USA pronunciationn.
stern-,
- 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.
- bef. 1000; Middle English; Old English styrne
stern′ness, n.
- 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 Stern implies uncompromising, inflexible firmness, and sometimes a hard, forbidding, or withdrawn aspect or nature:a stern parent.Severe implies strictness, lack of sympathy, and a tendency to impose a hard discipline on others:a severe judge.Harsh suggests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.
- 1. lenient.
stern2 (stûrn),USA pronunciation
- Nautical, Naval Termsthe after part of a vessel (often opposed to stem).
- the back or rear of anything.
- Astronomy(cap.) the constellation Puppis.
- Sport[Fox Hunting.]the tail of a hound.
- Old Norse stjōrn steering (done aft; see sternpost)
- Middle English sterne, probably 1250–1300
Stern (stûrn),USA pronunciation
- Biographical Isaac, born 1920, U.S. violinist, born in Russia.
- Biographical Otto, 1888–1969, U.S. physicist, born in Germany: Nobel prize 1943.
stern-,
- var. of sterno- before a vowel:sternite.