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
The yin and yang found in 21 Savage’s menacing whispers over the bass and drums, derivative of Tay Keith’s style, and his stark threats over Metro Boomin’s familiar keys create atmospheric success.
—
Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 20 June 2026
But stark differences emerged over Ukraine.
—Nicole Winfield, Fortune, 20 June 2026
The current reality puts into stark view both how much has changed — and how little.
—Michael Stevens, New York Daily News, 19 June 2026
But stark differences emerged over Ukraine.
—Nicole Winfield, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for stark
Demicia Inman, VIBE.com, 20 June 2026
But stark differences emerged over Ukraine.
—Nicole Winfield, Fortune, 20 June 2026
The current reality puts into stark view both how much has changed — and how little.
—Michael Stevens, New York Daily News, 19 June 2026
But stark differences emerged over Ukraine.
—Nicole Winfield, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for stark
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stark
Adjective
-
Travellers could be forgiven for growing grim about the mouth.—
Zach Helfand,
New Yorker,
16 June 2026
-
More to Explore In hundreds of grim mines, Sicilian children were exploited in slave-like conditions.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
The Emmys’ producers passing up on even the slightest possibility of a Werner Herzog acceptance speech is sheer lunacy.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
20 June 2026
-
For a few weeks, concerns about skyrocketing housing costs and gentrification, brought on by the city’s increasing popularity as a place to settle down, are taking a back seat to the sheer fun of international soccer.—
Jack Flemming,
Los Angeles Times,
19 June 2026
Adjective
-
The island is devoid of high rises and fast-food restaurants.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
21 June 2026
-
The play, intentionally devoid of physical male characters, focuses on women's stories, sisterhood, and reclaiming one's life.—
Dominique Fluker,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2026
Adjective
-
Wilderness Little Kulala is about a 45-minute drive outside the park, located in a seemingly desolate rocky plain with harsh, jagged mountains interspersed throughout the flatlands.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
19 June 2026
-
Most of the women disappeared between 2000 and 2010, and most of their remains were found on a desolate parkway not far from Long Island’s Gilgo Beach, some 50 miles (80 kilometers) from Manhattan.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 June 2026
Adjective
-
Was Kenzaburo Oe, for example, subjected to the same spartan toilet seat?—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
10 June 2026
-
My take → For a $16 billion company, PR has a shockingly spartan website.—
Brian Sullivan,
CNBC,
3 June 2026
Adjective
-
But Rose bet that a less gruff voice, ultimately Mike Brown’s, was required to win it all.—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
14 June 2026
-
Platner, a gruff 41-year-old Marine Corps veteran, is trying to unseat Republican Senator Susan Collins with a platform of economic populism, universal health care, labor protections, and anti-interventionism.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
4 June 2026
Adjective
-
Armando Chavez, owner of local business NorCal Siders, was brought in for a simple roof patch-up but left with a big idea.—
Kayla Moeller,
CBS News,
18 June 2026
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The cause can be something as simple as a lack of water or more complex, like fungal wilt diseases, tomato wilt viruses, walnut toxicity, or boring insects.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
17 June 2026
Adjective
-
If a circle is empty, for example, players must learn to move their hands in the opposite direction to complete that task.—
Joshua Kloke,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
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No smoke wafting through the parking lots, which included multiple empty sections.—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
17 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stark.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stark. Accessed 23 Jun. 2026.
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