"sternest" in the adjective sense
1. austere, stern
of a stern or strict bearing or demeanor forbidding in aspect
"an austere expression"
"a stern face"
2. grim, inexorable, relentless, stern, unappeasable, unforgiving, unrelenting
not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty
"grim determination"
"grim necessity"
"Russia's final hour, it seemed, approached with inexorable certainty"
"relentless persecution"
"the stern demands of parenthood"
3. stern, strict, exacting
severe and unremitting in making demands
"an exacting instructor"
"a stern disciplinarian"
"strict standards"
4. austere, severe, stark, stern
severely simple
"a stark interior"
Source: WordNet® (An amazing lexical database of English)
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