stamina
1 Americannoun
noun
noun
noun
Usage
What does stamina mean? Stamina is endurance—the strength or energy to keep going, even when tired or facing other unfavorable conditions. The word is most commonly used in the context of sports to refer to the ability to continue performing despite fatigue. Athletes train to improve their stamina. Stamina is also the plural form of the word stamen, which is the part of a flower that produces pollen. Interestingly, both senses of the word are based on the same Latin root. Example: A lot of players are fast and strong, but it’s the ones who have worked to increase their stamina who are most effective at the end of a long game.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of stamina
1535–45; < Latin, plural of stāmen thread ( see stamen); i.e., the life-threads spun by the Fates
Explanation
If you can run for a really long time, or carry a heavy box a really long way, you have stamina. Stamina is staying power or enduring strength. Stamina is not always related to physical strength and endurance. Solving a difficult puzzle or a complex problem requires your brain to work long and hard, something called mental stamina. If you have had a really tough year, but are doing generally fine, someone might say you have emotional stamina. It can also mean "perseverance." Do you have the stamina to learn this word?
Vocabulary lists containing stamina
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
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Essential Academic Vocabulary for Middle School Students, List 1
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An Inspirational Back-to-School Word List
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Stamina is what’s required of those born into an earthly reality, for which, to quote mordant Beckett, there is no cure.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 20, 2025
Stamina seemed to give out on both occasions, but win in Grand National Trial at Punchestown last month offered greater encouragement.
From BBC • Apr. 13, 2023
Stamina and physicality clearly were not up to standard when September ’21 arrived.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 2, 2022
It comes in three 47mm models and includes many of the same features as the Fenix 7 like buttons, touchscreens, and Real-Time Stamina.
From The Verge • Jan. 18, 2022
There are only two known species, and they vary in the number of their Stamina, and divisions of the Corolla.
From The Botanical Magazine, Vol. 5 Or, Flower-Garden Displayed by Curtis, William
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
