What does "stern" mean?
The rear part (after end) of a ship or other vessel.
Stern
/stɜːn/ adj, name, noun, verb
adj, name, noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: The rear part (after end) of a ship or other vessel.
- Grammar: stern is listed as adj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: rear, abrasive tone, adamant, adamantine.
- Useful contrasts: animated, carefree, cheerful.
- Usage evidence: His stern tone and loud voice belied his inner sensitivity and caring nature.
How to use "stern"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "stern" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "stern" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "stern" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "stern" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "stern" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "rear" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "stern", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 The rear part (after end) of a ship or other vessel.
"Holonyms: watercraft < vessel"
- 2 A bird, the black tern, seabird.
- 3 the rear part of a ship wordnet
- 4 The post of management or direction. figuratively
"and sit chiefest stern of public weal"
- 5 the fleshy part of the human body that you sit on wordnet
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 The hinder part of anything.
- 7 The tail of an animal; now used only of the tail of a dog.
"And all attonce her beaſtly bodie raizd / With doubled forces high aboue the ground: / Tho wrapping vp her wrethed ſterne arownd, / Lept fierce vpon his ſhield, [...]"
Verb
- 1 To steer, to direct the course of (a ship). ambitransitive, obsolete
- 2 To propel or move backward or stern-first in the water. ambitransitive
Adjective
- 1 Having a hardness and severity of nature or manner.
"I haue beene wooed, as I intreat thee now, / Euen by the ſterne, and direfull God of warre, / VVhoſe ſinowie necke in battel nere did bow, / VVho conquers where he comes in euery iarre; […]"
- 2 Grim and forbidding in appearance.
"these barren rocks, your stern inheritance"
Adjective
- 1 severe and unremitting in making demands wordnet
- 2 of a stern or strict bearing or demeanor; forbidding in aspect wordnet
- 3 not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty wordnet
- 4 severely simple wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"His stern tone and loud voice belied his inner sensitivity and caring nature."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "stern"?
Common synonyms include: rear, abrasive tone, adamant, adamantine, aft, after part.
How do you use "stern" in a sentence?
His stern tone and loud voice belied his inner sensitivity and caring nature.
How do you pronounce "stern"?
Pronounced /stɜːn/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English stern, sterne, sturne, from Old English styrne (“stern, grave, strict, austere, hard, severe, cruel”), from Proto-Germanic *sturnijaz (“angry, astonished, shocked”), from Proto-Indo-European *ster- (“rigid, stiff”). Cognate with Scots stern (“bold, courageous, fierce, resolute”), Old High German stornēn (“to be astonished”), Dutch stuurs (“glum, austere”), Swedish stursk (“insolent”).
Etymology 2
Most likely from Old Norse stjórn (“control, steering”), related to stýra (“to steer”), from Proto-Germanic *stiurijaną, whence also English steer. Also possibly from Old Frisian stiarne (“rudder”), from the same Germanic root. The sense referring to a management post alludes to the fact that a sailing ship's captain would often stand on an aft deck.
Etymology 3
From a variant of tern.
Etymology 4
* As a German and Jewish surname, from the noun Stern (“star”). This was also borrowed into various Slavic languages such as Serbo-Crotian and Slovenian. * As an English surname, from the adjective stern.