adverb

sternly

sternly, severely

'Sit down now,' she said sternly.

'Sit down now,' she said sternly.

He looked at me sternly.

He looked at me sternly.

((verb)) sternly modifies a verb to describe how an action is done She looked at him sternly.

Synonyms: strictly, severely, harshly; Antonyms: gently, kindly

From 'stern' (adjective) + the adverb-forming suffix '-ly'.

It describes an action done in a 'stern' way. If you know 'stern', you know 'sternly'.

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