All stern synonyms
stern
S s adj stern
- hard as nails β tough, durable
- hard-hearted β unfeeling; unmerciful; pitiless.
- dorsal β of, relating to, or situated at the back, or dorsum.
- ironfisted β ruthless, harsh, and tyrannical: an ironfisted dictator.
- hard β not soft; solid and firm to the touch; unyielding to pressure and impenetrable or almost impenetrable.
- in-compliant β not compliant; unyielding.
- hard-line β adhering rigidly to a dogma, theory, or plan; uncompromising or unyielding: hard-line union demands.
- dictatorial β Dictatorial means controlled or used by a dictator.
- by the book β according to the rules; in the prescribed or usual way
- dead set β absolutely
- rigid β stiff or unyielding; not pliant or flexible; hard: a rigid strip of metal.
- rigorous β characterized by rigor; rigidly severe or harsh, as people, rules, or discipline: rigorous laws.
- abstinent β forbearance from any indulgence of appetite, especially from the use of alcoholic beverages: total abstinence.
- in earnest β If something is done or happens in earnest, it happens to a much greater extent and more seriously than before.
- serious β of, showing, or characterized by deep thought.
- ironhanded β having or governing with an iron hand.
- anarchic β If you describe someone or something as anarchic, you disapprove of them because they do not recognize or obey any rules or laws.
- dog eat dog β marked by destructive or ruthless competition; without self-restraint, ethics, etc.: It's a dog-eat-dog industry.
- grim β stern and admitting of no appeasement or compromise: grim determination; grim necessity.
- hardcore β unswervingly committed; uncompromising; dedicated: a hard-core segregationist.
- hard-boiled β Cookery. (of an egg) boiled in the shell long enough for the yolk and white to solidify.
- austere β If you describe something as austere, you approve of its plain and simple appearance.
- crack the whip β to assert one's authority, esp to put people under pressure to work harder
- mizzen β a fore-and-aft sail set on a mizzenmast. Compare crossjack, spanker (def 1a).
- long-faced β having an unhappy or gloomy expression; glum.
- imperative β imperative language
- locked in β a device for securing a door, gate, lid, drawer, or the like in position when closed, consisting of a bolt or system of bolts propelled and withdrawn by a mechanism operated by a key, dial, etc.
- hard-headed β not easily moved or deceived; practical; shrewd.
- go for broke β a simple past tense of break.
- iron-fisted β ruthless, harsh, and tyrannical: an ironfisted dictator.
- hindermost β Hindmost.
noun stern
- hinds β Zoology. the female of the deer, chiefly the red deer, especially in and after the third year.
- breeches β Breeches are trousers which reach as far as your knees.
- back β If you move back, you move in the opposite direction to the one in which you are facing or in which you were moving before.
- afterpart β A rear part.
- back seat β a seat at the back, esp of a vehicle
adjective stern
- overexact β Too exact; overscrupulous; pedantic.
- overcritical β excessively critical; hypercritical.
- censorious β If you describe someone as censorious, you do not like the way they strongly disapprove of and criticize someone else's behaviour.
- disapproving β Expressing an unfavorable opinion.
- exacting β Making great demands on one's skill, attention, or other resources.
- fierce β menacingly wild, savage, or hostile: fierce animals; a fierce look.
- doctrinaire β a person who tries to apply some doctrine or theory without sufficient regard for practical considerations; an impractical theorist.
- hardboiled β Alternative spelling of hard-boiled.
- flinty β composed of, containing, or resembling flint, especially in hardness.
- highhanded β Alternative spelling of high-handed.
- dour β sullen; gloomy: The captain's dour look depressed us all.
- gruff β low and harsh; hoarse: a gruff voice.
- forbidding β grim; unfriendly; hostile; sinister: his forbidding countenance.