Stark
Severely plain or bare; giving a stark, harsh, or complete impression; extreme or blunt in contrast.
adjectiveStark
Severely plain or bare; giving a stark, harsh, or complete impression; extreme or blunt in contrast.
adjectiveImagine This
Imagine standing in a winter landscape with no color, no decorations, just white snow and bare trees. The scene feels stark—every detail is sharp, nothing soft or colorful to soften the view.
Sounds Like
Rhymes with dark and mark; starts with a strong st- cluster.
Looks Like
Looks like 'dark' with an added 'st' at the front; a short, sharp consonant cluster that feels firm and abrupt.
Remember This
Stark is often used with contrasts (stark contrast), with nakedness (stark naked), or to emphasize harsh reality (stark reality). It can also intensify adjectives with phrases like 'stark raving mad.'
Other Forms
Connect With
bare, austere, severe; contrast, reality, nakedness
Note
Do not confuse stark with similar-sounding words like starch or starkly in unrelated senses. 'Stark' emphasizes bare, severe, or absolute conditions. When describing people, it often conveys bluntness or severity; when describing environments, it conveys emptiness or severity.