stint
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a set period of time that you spend doing a particular job or activity.
n.a fixed or allotted period of work, service, or specific activity.
Simple“After a two-year stint in the army, he returned home to start university.”
In context“She completed a brief stint as a junior researcher in London before being headhunted by a major firm in New York.”
UsageOften used with the preposition 'in' or 'as'.
- 02 C1 Advanced
v.to limit the amount of something you give or use, often because you are being very careful or cheap.
v.to restrict someone to a small or meager allowance; to be frugal or sparing with resources.
Simple“The hotel didn't stint on the breakfast, providing a huge variety of fresh food.”
In context“The organizers did not stint on the decorations, ensuring that every hall was draped in expensive silk and fresh flowers.”
UsageCommonly used in the negative ('did not stint on') to emphasize generosity.
- 03 C2 Proficiency
n.a very small bird that lives near water and has long legs for wading.
n.any of several small wading birds in the genus Calidris, similar to a sandpiper.
Simple“We saw a little stint feeding in the mud at the edge of the lake.”
In context“The estuary is a vital stopover for migratory shorebirds, including the red-necked stint and other small waders.”
Synonymssandpiper
“It followed a promising if inconsistent year at Watford in the Championship, after brief stints in Germany and Switzerland.”
“Despite that, he forged an impressive academic career, mostly focusing on race and education, with stints at Roehampton, Glasgow and Durham universities.”
From Middle English stinten, from Old English styntan (“to make blunt”) and stintan (attested in āstintan (“to make dull, stint, assuage”)), from Proto-West Germanic stuntijan, from Proto-Germanic stuntijaną and Proto-Germanic stintaną (“to make short”), probably influenced in some senses by cognate Old Norse *stynta, stytta (“to make short, shorten”).
Origin unknown.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.