sting

American  

[sting] / stɪŋ /

verb (used with object)

• stings,
  present (3rd person singular)
• stung,
  past participle,  past
• stang,
  past (Obsolete)
• stinging
  present participle

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.

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verb (used without object)

• stings,
  present (3rd person singular)
• stung,
  past participle,  past
• stang,
  past (Obsolete)
• stinging
  present participle

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

• stings
  plural

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.

   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 British  

/ 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

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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. an unexpected and unpleasant ending

sting Idioms  

1. see take the sting out of.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• stingingness
  noun
• resting
  verb
• outsting
  verb (used with object)
• stinging
  adjective
• stingless
  adjective
• unstinging
  adjective
• stingingly
  adverb
• unstingingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• stings
  plural

Participles

• stinging
  present
• stung
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• sting
  simple
• stings
  simple
• have stung
  perfect
• has stung
  perfect
• am stinging
  progressive
• are stinging
  progressive
• is stinging
  progressive
• have been stinging
  perfect progressive
• has been stinging
  perfect progressive

Past

• stang
  simple
• stung
  simple
• had stung
  perfect
• was stinging
  progressive
• were stinging
  progressive
• had been stinging
  perfect progressive

Future

• will sting
  simple
• will have stung
  perfect
• will be stinging
  progressive
• will have been stinging
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of sting

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

Explanation

Sting most commonly refers to the wound inflicted by a bee or hornet, or to a kind of burning pain, like the brief sting when your doctor gives you a vaccine. A nasty remark can also sting. "Float like a butterfly. Sting like a bee!" was Muhammad Ali's famous taunt to other fighters. But insects and boxers aren't the only ones who can sting. When someone says something that's both mean and true, it can sting. Such things are often referred to as stinging remarks. But if you're thinking crime, then a sting is a con-job that takes planning to pull off. When the cops spend months creating a fake crime-ring in order to catch criminals in the act, it's referred to a "sting operation."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sting stings stang stung stinging

The crowd laughed eagerly, but there was an unmistakable existential sting to that punchline.

From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026

Higher rates tend to weigh on nonyielding assets like gold, though markets had largely priced in the move, taking some sting out of the reaction.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

The fifth episode’s title, “Riches of Embarrassment,” is derived from a halftime rallying speech Ted delivers to soften the sting of Alice calling their first-half performance embarrassing.

From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2026

The proposed donation was never made as it was part of an undercover sting, but that it was seemingly entertained has sparked questions.

From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2026

As a gay activist once put it, “Only by fully embracing the stigma itself can one neutralize the sting and make it laughable.”

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

"Most of the species found in Scotland have very mild stings, which only cause minor irritation, and some are completely harmless," she said.

From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026

The fact that Patel has no criminal record and is not required to be on probation stings for San Mateo County Dist.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026

This can be caused by food, medicine or insect stings.

From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026

It may not be as bad as bailing on the Bambino, but losing Betts still stings.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026

The word “had” stings my eyes, and I walk away without reading the rest.

From "Watch Us Rise" by Renée Watson and Ellen Hagan

But I have strong suspicions you are, and if so, as the children say, "I hope that stang!"

From Time Magazine Archive

Here is a box full of humble bees, That stang Eve as she sat on her knees, Tasting the fruit to her forbidden.

From A Select Collection of Old English Plays, Volume 1 by William Carew Hazlitt

It's nayther for thy part, nor my part, That I ride the stang.

From Yorkshire Dialect Poems (1673-1915) and traditional poems by Frederic William Moorman

A blessing on the cheery gang Wha dearly like a jig or sang, An’ never think o’ right an’ wrang By square an’ rule, But as the clegs o’ feeling stang Are wise or fool.

From The Complete Works of Robert Burns: Containing his Poems, Songs, and Correspondence. With a New Life of the Poet, and Notices, Critical and Biographical by Allan Cunningham by Robert Burns

In the Yorkshire Dialect Society's Transactions, vol. iii., part xvi., will be found a racy account, in the Beverley dialect, of the custom of "ridin' t' stang."

From Yorkshire Dialect Poems (1673-1915) and traditional poems by Frederic William Moorman

The auto industry in recent years has been stung by supply chain disruptions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

But please do not do this if you have allergies, or are likely to get stung.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026

Though stung, physically and emotionally, Sara carries on with a trip to the Devil’s Mouth caves because her recently deceased father visited them.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026

He and his wife left the town for Bordeaux on Saturday, but found that in the city "the air was acrid - it stung your eyes and people were wearing masks".

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

After using his machete to hack his way through the dense foliage—all while getting stung and bitten by wasps and ants—Kermit would set up the sighting rod.

From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple

Shazeer’s departure is especially stinging because Google parent Alphabet spent billions of dollars bringing him back to the company only two years ago.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026

However, nearly all of that pattern can be traced to one particular group: the aculeate Hymenoptera, which includes stinging wasps, bees and ants.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026

It’s a stinging insult: By the samurai code, Kanbei should be killed, not imprisoned — Murashige couldn’t have landed a more devastating slap than by letting him live.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026

The pain of the semi-final loss to Argentina has been exacerbated by the stinging criticism he has faced from supporters, pundits and journalists over England's defensive retreat in the closing stages.

From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026

Alyce stood before the cottage, eyes stinging and heart sore.

From "The Midwife's Apprentice" by Karen Cushman

Related Words

• bite
• hurt
• inspire