From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishstarkstark1 /stɑːk $ stɑːrk/ adjective 1 SIMPLE/PLAINvery plain in appearance, with little or no colour or decoration In the cold dawn light, the castle looked stark and forbidding. the stark beauty of New Mexico2 UNPLEASANTunpleasantly clear and impossible to avoid SYN harsh The movie shows the stark realities of life in the ghetto. The extreme poverty of the local people is in stark contrast to the wealth of the tourists. We are faced with a stark choice. a stark reminder of life under Communist rule —starkly adverb —starkness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
stark• The contrast between the lawyer and Scott was stark.• Ethnic divisions in the region remain stark.• the stark beauty of the desert• stark chrome furniture• This is in stark contrast to the fifties and sixties when loan capital formed an important part of corporate financing needs.• They were stark dramas of the billion-footed city.• Once or twice, soft stark footfalls went along the corridor.• Her apartment was clean and stark in a Straight forward way.• As a nation, we are right to finally confront the stark reality of needless suffering among the dying.• It was how I'd always imagined showbiz would be - far removed from the stark reality of Working Men's Clubs.• Others are put off by the stark social and economic differences between the two communities.• Gone are the gray industrial carpeting and the stark white walls.• The waiting room was stark, with hard, stiff chairs and lit by a single lightbulb.stark contrast• The differing tactics present a stark contrast.• Statistics are poor and not easily comparable, but those which do exist show stark contrasts in conditions between different education authorities.• They're in stark contrast to an earlier picture he'd rather forget.• It was a human approach to football management in stark contrast to conditions beyond the boundaries of Arsenal Stadium.• This line of argument is in stark contrast to Drebin etal.• This is in stark contrast to the fifties and sixties when loan capital formed an important part of corporate financing needs.• The suicidal farmers can be set in stark contrast to the wealthy shareholders who pocket the difference.• It was a stark contrast with the commercial failure of the videodisc.starkstark2 adverb 1 → stark naked2 → stark raving mad/bonkersExamples from the Corpus
stark• I was stark naked and trussed up like a Haggis in mourning.• Adam struggled, but he was too weak and the storm-troopers tore his trousers off, leaving him stark naked.Origin stark1 Old English stearc “stiff, strong” 