Word a Day
stern
What does stern mean?
stern (adjective): severe and unremitting in making demands.
Definition: Princeton WordNet 3.1.
How do you use stern in a sentence?
- A stern disciplinarian. (Princeton WordNet 3.1)
How do you pronounce stern?
/stɝn/ (IPA, American English). The app reads every word aloud.
Where does stern come from?
From Middle English stern, sterne, sturne, from Old English styrne (“stern, grave, strict, austere, hard, severe, cruel”).
Etymology: Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Test yourself: do you know “stern”?
Tap an answer to check it. The same questions the app asks.
What does “stern” mean?
untrue, not factual, factually incorrect
Not quite: that's what false means.
severe and unremitting in making demands
Right! That's what “stern” means.
having or caused by an irregular surface
Not quite: that's what rough means.
common to all society; worldwide, global
Not quite: that's what universal means.
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