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- From the verb sting: (⇒ conjugate)
- stang is: ⓘClick the infinitive to see all available inflections
- v past
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026stang
(stang),USA pronunciation v. [Obs.]- pt. of sting.
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026sting /stɪŋ/USA pronunciation
v., stung/stʌŋ/USA pronunciation sting•ing, n. v.
- Zoologyto prick or wound (a person or animal) with a sharp-pointed part of the body that often contains poison or venom: [~ + object]The bee stung her on the foot.[no object]Dogs bite and bees sting.
- to affect painfully as a result of contact, as certain plants do: [no object]That plant will sting if you touch it.[~ + object]The nettle stung him.
- to cause to feel a sharp pain: [~ + object]The bullet stung his arm as it grazed his shoulder.[no object]His eyes stung from the smoke.
- to cause (someone) to feel anger, resentment, insult, etc.: [~ + object]Those remarks stung her deeply.[no object]The memory of that insult still stings.
- to provoke (someone) to do some action: [~ + object + to + verb]Those insulting remarks stung her to reply sharply.[~ + object + into/to + object]He was finally stung into action.
- Slang Termsto cheat or take advantage of, esp. to overcharge;
soak:[~ + object]The swindlers stung me for over five thousand dollars.
n. [countable]
- Pathologyan act or instance of stinging.
- Pathologya wound or pain caused by stinging.
- any sharp physical or mental wound, hurt, or pain.
- Zoologya sharp-pointed part of the body of some insects or animals, often containing venom or poison.
- Slang Terms
- a swindle or confidence game.
- an apparently illegal action such as the buying of stolen goods, engaged in by undercover investigators to collect evidence of wrongdoing:an undercover sting filmed by hidden cameras.
sting•er, n. [countable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026sting (sting),USA pronunciation
v., stung or (Obs.) stang;
stung;
sting•ing;
n.
v.t.
- Zoologyto prick or wound with a sharp-pointed, often venom-bearing organ.
- to affect painfully or irritatingly as a result of contact, as certain plants do:to be stung by nettles.
- to cause to smart or to cause a sharp pain:The blowing sand stung his eyes.
- to cause mental or moral anguish:to be stung with remorse.
- to goad or drive, as by sharp irritation.
- Slang Termsto cheat or take advantage of, esp. to overcharge;
soak.
v.i.
- to use, have, or wound with a sting, as bees.
- to cause a sharp, smarting pain, as some plants, an acrid liquid or gas, or a slap or hit.
- to cause acute mental pain or irritation, as annoying thoughts or one's conscience:The memory of that insult still stings.
- to feel acute mental pain or irritation:He was stinging from the blow to his pride.
- to feel a smarting pain, as from a blow or the sting of an insect.
n.
- Pathologyan act or an instance of stinging.
- Pathologya wound, pain, or smart caused by stinging.
- any sharp physical or mental wound, hurt, or pain.
- anything or an element in anything that wounds, pains, or irritates:to feel the sting of defeat; Death, where is thy sting?
- capacity to wound or pain:Satire has a sting.
- a sharp stimulus or incitement:driven by the sting of jealousy; the sting of ambition.
- Botanya glandular hair on certain plants, as nettles, that emits an irritating fluid.
- Zoologyany of various sharp-pointed, often venom-bearing organs of insects and other animals capable of inflicting painful or dangerous wounds.
- Slang Terms
- See confidence game.
- 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.
- bef. 900; (verb, verbal) Middle English stingen, Old English stingan to pierce; cognate with Old Norse stinga to pierce, Gothic -stangan (in usstangan to pull out); (noun, nominal) Middle English sting(e), Old English: act of stinging, derivative of the verb, verbal
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
sting /stɪŋ/ vb (stings, stinging, stung)- (of certain animals and plants) to inflict a wound on (an organism) by the injection of poison
- to feel or cause to feel a sharp mental or physical pain
- (transitive) to goad or incite (esp in the phrase sting into action)
- (transitive) informal to cheat, esp by overcharging
n - a skin wound caused by the poison injected by certain insects or plants
- pain caused by or as if by the sting of a plant or animal
- a mental pain or pang: a sting of conscience
- a sharp pointed organ, such as the ovipositor of a wasp, by which poison can be injected into the prey
- the ability to sting: a sharp sting in his criticism
- something as painful or swift of action as a sting: the sting of death
- a sharp stimulus or incitement
- slang a swindle or fraud
- slang a trap set up by the police to entice a person to commit a crime and thereby produce evidence
- sting in the tail ⇒ an unexpected and unpleasant ending
Etymology: Old English stingan; related to Old Norse stinga to pierce, Gothic usstangan to pluck out, Greek stakhus ear of cornˈstinging adj
'stang' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
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