stern

Trump's Republican Party faces a stern test at upcoming midterm elections in November, with Democrats seeking to wrest control of both houses of Congress.

From Barron's ● Aug. 14, 2026

The blaze originated in the stern, sending passengers fleeing to the bow where they were all given life jackets, Muhammad said.

From Barron's ● Aug. 3, 2026

Universal Studios has issued a stern warning after an unauthorized copy of its hit film “The Odyssey” was leaked over the weekend.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026

The scene, which Günes said last took place two months ago, is a snapshot not from a stern theocracy ruled by capricious clerics, but from the capital of Europe’s largest economy.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026

In the distance now and then I would see dolphins; closer in, flying fish; and still closer, at the stern, sharks waiting for the daily garbage from the galley.

From This Side of Wild by Gary Paulsen

Navy said Revolutionary Guard vessels repeatedly crossed the bows and sterns of several American ships at close range and high speed in the northern Gulf.

From Washington Times ● Apr. 22, 2020

With the sterns half-ashore, breakers could then cut in and dismantle the ships laterally, as a snacker might eat through a baguette.

From The Guardian ● May 2, 2017

Thousands of office workers rush past it every day without noticing its three bay windows carved as the sterns of baroque frigates, complete with waves, dolphins and trailing seaweed.

From New York Times ● Feb. 27, 2015

Bows and sterns of destroyers, weighing 30-40 tons apiece, were assembled in mammoth shops ashore, rolled out, lifted by giant cranes on to the ways.

From Time Magazine Archive

Young men in uniforms stood ready there to grab hold of the sterns of the boats when they arrived for the start.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

After the seven-time champion produced a statement performance against former top-10 player Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round, Djokovic had to overcome a far sterner test on his return to Centre Court.

From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026

With his latest, “Kontinental ’25,” Jude — who also put out a coarsely wacky version of “Dracula” last year — shifts away from clownishness and toward a sterner register of concern for society.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026

Much sterner tests lie ahead for Rosenior, starting with a visit from Premier League leaders Arsenal in the League Cup semi-final first leg on Wednesday.

From Barron's ● Jan. 10, 2026

But it remains to be seen whether this president and the country he leads are ready for the sterner tests to come.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2025

Jeyne covered her eyes whenever a man fell, like a frightened little girl, but Sansa was made of sterner stuff.

From "A Game of Thrones" by George R.R. Martin

The blockage in the Persian Gulf poses the sternest test the reserves have ever faced.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 9, 2026

The challenge comes just as investors’ appetite for risk, and sentiment regarding tech stocks, face their sternest tests since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022.

From Barron's ● Feb. 5, 2026

This was the sternest examination so far of that new image.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2025

In death penalty cases, the legal system is put to its sternest test.

From Salon ● Jun. 29, 2025

Even the sternest teachers and the brash older girls with whom you hardly dared to speak smiled at you in a special, knowing way your whole birthday long.

From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood