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# stern

«stern» in Mova's school dictionary: **serious and strict, not smiling, like a teacher who wants…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

### part of speech

adjective (stern, sterner, sternest); noun (the stern, sterns)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Stern means serious and strict, not smiling, like a teacher who wants you to behave. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#m1)

2) The stern is the back part of a ship or boat. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#m2)

3) Stern can also describe a hard, serious test or warning: a stern warning. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#m3)

### sense in the lessons

In stories a stern face or voice tells the reader that someone is strict or angry and expects obedience. On boats children learn stern (back) and bow (front). Phrases: a stern look, a stern warning, from stem to stern (from front to back, all of it).

### examples

- The headteacher gave us a stern look. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x1)
- Grandpa's voice was stern: «Go to bed now.» [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x2)
- We got a stern warning about running in the corridor. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x3)
- We sat at the stern of the boat. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x4)
- The captain stood at the stern and steered. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x5)
- She is stern but fair. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x6)
- The ship was cleaned from stem to stern. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x7)
- Now, Minos was a stern and pitiless king. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/#x8)

### note

Adverb: sternly. The front of a boat is the bow; the back is the stern; left is port; right is starboard. «Stern» (strict) and «stern» (back of a boat) are spelled the same but are different words.

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «stern» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/stern/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.