Word
stung
US/ˈstəŋ/
UK/stˈʌŋ/
Definition
v. the past tense of 'sting', used when an insect or plant causes a sharp pain in your skin.
v. the past tense and past participle of 'sting'; refers to the act of a sharp organ or hair piercing the skin and injecting venom.
Examples
“A bee stung me on the arm yesterday.”
“The hiker realized he had walked through a patch of nettles when his ankles suddenly stung.”
“Although the physical wound was minor, the athlete felt stung by the coach's public criticism of his performance during the final minutes of the game.”
Examples
simple
“A bee stung me on the arm yesterday.”
contextual
“The hiker realized he had walked through a patch of nettles when his ankles suddenly stung.”
complex
“Although the physical wound was minor, the athlete felt stung by the coach's public criticism of his performance during the final minutes of the game.”
Usage
The verb is transitive when referring to the act of piercing, but can be used intransitively to describe the resulting sensation of sharp pain.
Pitfall
The bee has stinged me
The bee has stung me
Sting is an irregular verb; the past participle is 'stung', not 'stinged'.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/stung