Dictionary
Thesaurus
Encyclopedia
Translator
Web
Related Searches
Synonyms
Nearby Words

stung

 - 11 dictionary results

stung

  [stuhng] ,
Use stung in a Sentence
–verb
a pt. and pp. of sting.

sting

  [sting] ,verb, stung or (Obsolete) stang; stung; sting⋅ing; noun
–verb (used with object)
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, esp. to overcharge; soak.
–verb (used without object)
7. to use, have, or wound with a sting, as bees.
8. to cause a sharp, smarting pain, as some plants, an acrid liquid or gas, or a slap or hit.
9. to cause acute mental pain or irritation, as annoying thoughts or one's conscience: The memory of that insult still stings.
10. to feel acute mental pain or irritation: He was stinging from the blow to his pride.
11. to feel a smarting pain, as from a blow or the sting of an insect.
–noun
12. an act or an instance of stinging.
13. a wound, pain, or smart caused by stinging.
14. any sharp physical or mental wound, hurt, or pain.
15. anything or an element in anything that wounds, pains, or irritates: to feel the sting of defeat; Death, where is thy sting?
16. capacity to wound or pain: Satire has a sting.
17. a sharp stimulus or incitement: driven by the sting of jealousy; the sting of ambition.
18. Botany. a glandular hair on certain plants, as nettles, that emits an irritating fluid.
19. Zoology. any of various sharp-pointed, often venom-bearing organs of insects and other animals capable of inflicting painful or dangerous wounds.
20. Slang.
a. confidence game.
b. 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.
Origin:
bef. 900; (v.) ME stingen, OE stingan to pierce; c. ON stinga to pierce, Goth -stangan (in usstangan to pull out); (n.) ME sting(e), OE: act of stinging, deriv. of the v.

Related forms:
sting⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
stingless, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To stung
sting   (stĭng)   
v.   stung (stŭng), sting·ing, stings

v.   tr.

  1. To pierce or wound painfully with or as if with a sharp-pointed structure or organ, as that of certain insects.

  2. To cause to feel a sharp, smarting pain by or as if by pricking with a sharp point: smoke stinging our eyes.

  3. To cause to suffer keenly in the mind or feelings: Those harsh words stung me bitterly.

  4. To spur on by or as if by sharp irritation.

  5. Slang To cheat or overcharge.

v.   intr.

  1. To have, use, or wound with or as if with a sharp-pointed structure or organ, as that of certain insects.

  2. To cause or feel a sharp, smarting pain.

n.  

  1. The act of stinging.

  2. The wound or pain caused by or as if by stinging.

  3. A sharp, piercing organ or part, often ejecting a venomous secretion, as the modified ovipositor of a bee or wasp or the spine of certain fishes.

  4. A stinging power, quality, or capacity.

  5. A keen stimulus or incitement; a goad or spur: the sting of curiosity.

  6. Slang A complicated confidence game planned and executed with great care, especially an operation organized and implemented by undercover agents to apprehend criminals.


[Middle English stingen, from Old English stingan; see stegh- in Indo-European roots.]
sting'ing·ly adv.
stung   (stŭng)   
v.  Past tense and past participle of sting.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Slang Dictionary
sting

  1. tv.
    to cheat or swindle someone; to overcharge someone. : That street merchant stung me, but good.
  2. n.
    a well-planned scheme to entrap criminals. : The sting came off without a hitch.
  3. tv.
    to entrap and arrest someone. : “We've been stung!” they hollered.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
stung

  1. mod.
    alcohol intoxicated. : I'm a little stung by the mule, but I can find my way home if you'll just remind me how to open this door.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

sting  (v.)
O.E. stingan "to prick with a small point" (of weapons, insects, plants, etc.), from P.Gmc. *stenganan (cf. O.N. stinga, O.H.G. stungen "to prick," Goth. us-stagg "to prick out," O.H.G. stanga, Ger. stange "pole, perch," Ger. stengel "stalk, stem"), from PIE *stengh-, nasalized form of base *stegh- "to prick, sting" (cf. O.E. stagga "stag," Gk. stokhos "pointed stake"). Specialized to insects late 15c. Slang meaning "to cheat, swindle" is from 1812. The noun is O.E. stincg, steng "act of stinging, stinging pain;" meaning "carefully planned theft or robbery" is attested from 1930; sense of "police undercover entrapment" first attested 1975. Sting ray is from 1624.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: sting
Function: noun
: an elaborate confidence game; specifically : such a game worked by undercover police in order to catch criminals
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: 2sting
Function: noun
1 a : the act of stinging; specifically : the thrust of a stinger into the flesh b : a wound or pain caused by or as if by stinging
2 : STINGER

Main Entry: stung
past and past participle of STING
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source
Medical Dictionary

sting (stĭng)
v. stung (stŭng), sting·ing, stings

  1. To pierce or wound painfully with or as if with a sharp-pointed structure or organ, as that of certain insects.

  2. To introduce venom by stinging.

  3. To cause to feel a sharp smarting pain by or as if by pricking with a sharp point.

n.

  1. The act of stinging.

  2. The wound or pain caused by or as if by stinging.

  3. The venom apparatus of a stinging organism.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Cite This Source
Search another word or see stung on Thesaurus | Reference
FacebookTwitterFollow us:
Partner Sites:
Ask AnswersEviteExpediaHotelsHotwireLife123LiveDailyMy Way