[f. STERN sb.3; cf. ON. stjórna.]
† 1. trans. and intr. To steer, govern. Obs.
14[?]. Lat.-Eng. Voc., in Wr.-Wülcker, 605/27. Proreto, to sterne or to stere out.
1577–86. Stanyhurst, Descr. Irel., iii. 26/1, in Holinshed. A castell … which is a notable marke for pilots, in directing them which waie to sterne their ships.
1615. I. Bargrave, Serm., E 2. There was need of a skilfull pilot to rule and sterne the ship of State.
1648. Royalist’s Def., 86. Suppose three single persons had jointly the Soveraigne power of government, no man can imagine, but that they would … sterne severall wayes.
2. trans. To propel a boat stern foremost; also intr. to go stern foremost.
In this sense developed from the whaling term stern all, the order to back off after an harpoon has been entered, where stern originally = ASTERN.
[1823. J. F. Cooper, Pilot, xvii. ‘Starn all!’ ‘Stern all!’ echoed Barnstable. Ibid. ‘Starn off, sir, starn off! the creater’s in his flurry.’]
1845. J. Coulter, Adv. in Pacific, vii. 86. In I darted both irons with all my force—‘stern all’—and stern they did quickly enough.
1892. F. M. Crawford, Children of King (1893), I. 70. The dingy came rapidly back and the sailor sterned her to the rock for the boys to get in.
1904. F. T. Bullen, Creatures of Sea, xix. 270. He [the swordfish] sterns clear, describes a great circle and … again buries his weapon deep in its vitals.
3. To place astern, in the phrase stern the buoy (see quot.).
1711. Milit. & Sea Dict., s.v. Buoy, Stern the Buoy; that is, before they let the Anchor fall, whilst the Ship has Way, they put the Buoy into the Water, so that the Buoy-Rope may be stretch’d out strait, that so the Anchor may fall clear from entangling it self with the Buoy-Rope.
4. To cut off the tail of (a dog); see STERN sb.3 4.
1858. Lewis, in Youatt’s Dog (N. Y.), v. 170. The often absurd fancy of cropping and sterning dogs.
Hence † Sterning vbl. sb. steering, guidance. Also † Sterner, pilot, director.
a. 1634. R. Clerke, Serm., ii. (1637), 15. He that is Regens Sidera,… the Sterner of the Starres.
1638. R. Baker, trans. Balzac’s Lett. (vol. III.), 230. I leave you liberty … to saile with the wind. Nothing but good success can be expected from your sterning.
