sting

[ sting ]

verb (used with object)

, stung [stuhng] or (Obsolete) stang [stang]; stung; sting·ing.

1. to prick or wound with a sharp-pointed, often venom-bearing organ.
2. to affect painfully or irritatingly as a result of contact, as certain plants do:

   to be stung by nettles.

3. to cause to smart or to cause a sharp pain:

   The blowing sand stung his eyes.

4. to cause mental or moral anguish:

   to be stung with remorse.

5. to goad or drive, as by sharp irritation.
6. Slang. to cheat or take advantage of, especially to overcharge; soak.

verb (used without object)

, stung [stuhng] or (Obsolete) stang [stang]; stung; sting·ing.

1. to use, have, or wound with a sting, as bees.
2. to cause a sharp, smarting pain, as some plants, an acrid liquid or gas, or a slap or hit.
3. to cause acute mental pain or irritation, as annoying thoughts or one's conscience:

   The memory of that insult still stings.

4. to feel acute mental pain or irritation:

   He was stinging from the blow to his pride.

5. to feel a smarting pain, as from a blow or the sting of an insect:

   His cheeks stung from the hail.

noun

1. an act or instance of stinging:

   The allergic reaction to a sting may be delayed for several hours.

2. a wound, pain, or smart caused by stinging:

   After an hour or so, the throbbing of the wasp sting subsided to a dull ache.

3. any sharp physical or mental wound, hurt, or pain:

   Laser treatment for wrinkles sounds like magic, but some people can’t tolerate the accompanying sting and burn.

4. anything or an element in anything that wounds, pains, or irritates:

   to feel the sting of defeat;

   Death, where is thy sting?

5. capacity to wound or pain:

   Satire has a sting.

6. a sharp stimulus or incitement:

   driven by the sting of jealousy;

   the sting of ambition.

7. Botany. a glandular hair on certain plants, as nettles, that emits an irritating fluid.
8. Zoology. any of various sharp-pointed, often venom-bearing organs of insects and other animals capable of inflicting painful or dangerous wounds.
9. Slang.
   1. confidence game ( def ).
   2. an ostensibly illegal operation, as the buying of stolen goods or the bribing of public officials, used by undercover investigators to collect evidence of wrongdoing.
10. Television. Sometimes . a brief burst of music or a sound effect used to emphasize a moment of humor, drama, or fright in a show, or to punctuate a transition or another part of a show’s structure.

sting

/ stɪŋ /

verb

1. (of certain animals and plants) to inflict a wound on (an organism) by the injection of poison
2. to feel or cause to feel a sharp mental or physical pain
3. tr to goad or incite (esp in the phrase sting into action )
4. informal.
   tr to cheat, esp by overcharging

noun

1. a skin wound caused by the poison injected by certain insects or plants
2. pain caused by or as if by the sting of a plant or animal
3. a mental pain or pang

   a sting of conscience

4. a sharp pointed organ, such as the ovipositor of a wasp, by which poison can be injected into the prey
5. the ability to sting

   a sharp sting in his criticism

6. something as painful or swift of action as a sting

   the sting of death

7. a sharp stimulus or incitement
8. botany another name for stinging hair
9. slang.
   a swindle or fraud
10. slang.
    a trap set up by the police to entice a person to commit a crime and thereby produce evidence
11. sting in the tail
    an unexpected and unpleasant ending

Derived Forms

• ˈstingingly, adverb
• ˈstingingness, noun
• ˈstinging, adjective

Other Words From

• sting·ing·ly adverb
• sting·less adjective
• out·sting verb (used with object) outstung outstinging
• re·sting verb restung restinging
• un·sting·ing adjective
• un·stinging·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of sting¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English verb stingen, Old English stingan “to pierce”; cognate with Old Norse stinga “to pierce,” Gothic -stangan (in usstangan “to pull out”); the noun is derivative of the verb

Word History and Origins

Origin of sting¹

Old English stingan; related to Old Norse stinga to pierce, Gothic usstangan to pluck out, Greek stakhus ear of corn

Idioms and Phrases

see take the sting out of .

Example Sentences

Baum reportedly felt regret over her remarks, but the sting has clearly remained for Sweeney.

From Los Angeles Times

You never knew if you’re being set up for a sting.

From Salon

Six forgery workshops were uncovered in the sting, including two in Tuscany, one in Venice and the rest elsewhere in Europe, Italian prosecutors added.

From BBC

Sting sits in a trailer at September’s Ohana Festival in Dana Point with two important questions before him: which songs to perform during that night’s headlining set and which pair of underwear to do it in.

From Los Angeles Times

One reason that’s easy to do is because, after years in which Sting busied himself with orchestral concerts and a Broadway musical and a residency in Las Vegas, the singer and bassist is on the road with just two other musicians — guitarist Dominic Miller and drummer Chris Maas.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• bite
• hurt
• inspire