Stern
/stɜːrn/noun
Severe, strict, or forbidding in manner or appearance.
Did you know?The English adjective comes from a Germanic word for “rigid” or “severe,” and its nautical cousin survives in the ship’s stern, the rear end that stays fixed while the vessel moves forward.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*ster-
“to be stiff, rigid, or strong”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*sternaz
“stiff, rigid, severe”
Old English
English
styrne
“strict, harsh, severe”
Middle English
English
stern
“severe, harsh, strict”
Modern English
English
stern
“severe, strict, or forbidding”