stint
1 Americanverb (used without object)
-
to be frugal; get along on a scanty allowance.
Don't stint on the food.
They stinted for years in order to save money.
-
Archaic. to cease action; desist.
verb (used with object)
noun
-
a period of time spent doing something.
a two-year stint in the army.
-
an allotted amount or piece of work.
to do one's daily stint.
-
limitation or restriction, especially as to amount.
to give without stint.
- Synonyms:
- tour of duty, tour, term, shift
-
a limited, prescribed, or expected quantity, share, rate, etc..
to exceed one's stint.
-
Obsolete. a pause; halt.
noun
verb
-
to be frugal or miserly towards (someone) with (something)
-
archaic to stop or check (something)
noun
-
an allotted or fixed amount of work
-
a limitation or check
-
obsolete a pause or stoppage
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stint1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English verb stinten, stenten “to cease,” Old English styntan “to make blunt, dull”; cognate with Old Norse stytta “to shorten” ( cf. stunt 1); noun derivative of the verb
Origin of stint2
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English; stynte, stint; further origin unknown
Explanation
The noun stint means a set amount of time in which you do something — often work of some sort. "She served a stint in the army, followed by a stint in an office setting, before settling on a career as a lounge singer." Unlike a project or vocation, a stint can refer to the stretch of time spent doing a particular job. You apply for a job, but you refer to your past stint in the Peace Corps. As a verb, stint means to be sparing or frugal, or restrict in a stingy manner ("to skimp"). "The school board chose to make cuts at the administrative level, rather than stint on the children's education."
Vocabulary lists containing stint
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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.
He served as secretary general of the presidency for a year, and was before that chief of staff to centrist Gabriel Attal during his brief stint as prime minister, in 2024.
From Barron's • May 20, 2026
It may have represented the end of Massie’s stint in Congress, but it also may represent the coalescing of a new faction in Republican politics.
From Slate • May 20, 2026
He later returned to OpenAI for a short stint and then launched an AI education startup called Eureka Labs.
From MarketWatch • May 19, 2026
You could absolutely stop at the stovetop stage, but I’d encourage you toward a brief stint in the oven if you have the time.
From Salon • May 19, 2026
Haynes was a mining engineer who became fascinated by archaeology during a stint in the air force.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
