stark naked

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English

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Etymology

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From Middle English stert naked (steort nakt, sternaked, star naked); the first element is from Old English steort (tail). The change from "start-naked" to "stark-naked" was most likely by folk etymology due to a misinterpretation of the phrase as being a way of saying "starkly naked" ("strongly naked, harshly naked").

Adjective

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stark naked (not comparable)

  1. Completely naked.

Synonyms

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Translations

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Noun

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stark naked (uncountable)

  1. (slang, archaic) Raw gin.
    Synonym: strip me naked
    • 1870, Langford Cecil, Fenacre Grange, page 15:
      "Give us a glass of 'stark naked,' Job! This plaguey fog's well nigh choked me," said Rube, spluttering and coughing, and vituperating it.

References

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  • John Camden Hotten (1873) The Slang Dictionary