1
as in grim
harsh and threatening in manner or appearance
stark and forbidding mountains that the settlers knew that they would have to cross
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sheer
having no exceptions or restrictions
the school's stark prohibition against obscene slogans on clothing
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in devoid
lacking contents that could or should be present
house buyers trying to imagine what those stark rooms would look like when filled with furniture
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in desolate
producing inferior or only a small amount of vegetation
a once-lush landscape rendered depressingly stark by strip-mining and deforestation
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in spartan
providing only the essentials and nothing fancy or luxurious
monks who have committed themselves to living in stark cells and working and praying in silence
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stark
Bukele has made the Central American country’s stark, harsh prisons a trademark of his fight against crime.
—
Marcos Alemán and Regina Garcia Cano, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2025
Robby Walker, who serves as a senior director at Apple, delivered the stark comments during an all-hands meeting for the Siri division, saying that the team was facing a bad period.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2025
His paintings capture the rhythms of daily life—women draped in flowing tobes set against stark, open backdrops of the sky or desert in some, bustling market stalls in others.
—Omnia Saed, ARTnews.com, 17 Mar. 2025
The Miami Heat’s search for identity since the Jimmy Butler trade has never been more stark than over the past two weeks, when Erik Spoelstra has utilized 11 different players as starters.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stark
Marcos Alemán and Regina Garcia Cano, Los Angeles Times, 17 Mar. 2025
Robby Walker, who serves as a senior director at Apple, delivered the stark comments during an all-hands meeting for the Siri division, saying that the team was facing a bad period.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2025
His paintings capture the rhythms of daily life—women draped in flowing tobes set against stark, open backdrops of the sky or desert in some, bustling market stalls in others.
—Omnia Saed, ARTnews.com, 17 Mar. 2025
The Miami Heat’s search for identity since the Jimmy Butler trade has never been more stark than over the past two weeks, when Erik Spoelstra has utilized 11 different players as starters.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stark
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stark
Adjective
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Smells like teen spirit As bloody and grim as Greek myths have always been, Santa Monica Studio established even darker trappings with 2005’s God of War.—
Diego Argüello,
Rolling Stone,
22 Mar. 2025
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The grim environment has done little to deter the Canadians from touting their diamond industry and close work with the Indigenous communities where the mines are based.—
Samantha Conti,
WWD,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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This semi sheer curtain panel is an ideal solution for anyone who’s looking to filter in light without sacrificing privacy.—
Megan Schaltegger,
Better Homes & Gardens,
23 Mar. 2025
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The film captures the sheer physical toll of the journey, with men battling not just the elements but each other, as fear and desperation set in.—
Travis Bean,
Forbes,
22 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Banking has become functionally correct but emotionally devoid, with the industry swimming in a sea of sameness.—
Michael Abbott,
Forbes,
19 Mar. 2025
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Delle, devoid for so long from its intrinsic need for social interaction might be filling in the gaps by talking to himself.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
14 Feb. 2023
Adjective
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Fourteen years of war have left the country desolate, and its people exhausted; millions have been displaced or were forced to become refugees.—
Raghed Waked & Justin Salhani,
The Dial,
25 Mar. 2025
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That quality is maintained first and foremost by a desolate whistling-wind sound effect in the background of all the scenes, along with a sustained droning musical score.—
Ben Coxworth,
New Atlas,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Simultaneously punched out, yet refusing to stay down for the count, a gruff Smith does his actorly best to understand, then diss, his public’s view of the slap heard round the world.—
A.D. Amorosi,
Variety,
28 Mar. 2025
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In a gruff voice, Fino speculated about what besides the mushroom might have caused the disease.—
Shayla Love,
The Atlantic,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Martha Stewart and Mila Kunis carried ones that looked like this simple option.—
Clint Davis,
People.com,
23 Mar. 2025
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Murena Pixel Tablet Apps Switching away from Google's flavor of Android will always result in an app gap, and there's no simple way around it.—
Ewan Spence,
Forbes,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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From 65 million to 80 million housing units across China are estimated to be empty.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
21 Mar. 2025
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At the end of the family's very eventful day, Duggar and Wissmann sat around a quiet, unlit campfire with many empty camping chairs waiting for the rest of the family to arrive.—
Rachel Flynn,
People.com,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Charlie Parker’s Favorite Painting (1946) indicates Abercrombie’s engagement with social issues: a yellow noose, nearly fluorescent against a dishwater sky, dangles from a barren tree—an oblique lament from the doggedly antiracist Abercrombie.—
Jeremy Lybarger,
ARTnews.com,
26 Mar. 2025
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Mass Effect's core loop doesn't benefit from huge barren landscapes that are devoid of detail.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
25 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Stark.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stark. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
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