styngen

Middle English

Alternative forms

• sting, stinge, stingen, styng, stynge, styngge

Etymology

Inherited from Old English stingan, from Proto-West Germanic *stingan, from Proto-Germanic *stinganą.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈstinɡən/, /ˈstiːnɡən/

Verb

styngen (third-person singular simple present styngeth, present participle styngynge, first-/third-person singular past indicative stang, past participle stungen)

1. To pierce or stab; to injure with a point.
2. To sting (to bite, usually using a stinger)
3. To insert; to put into.
4. (usually in the past participle) To afflict or injure.
5. (figurative) To copulate; to have sex.

Conjugation

Conjugation of styngen (strong class 3)

infinitive	(to) styngen, stynge
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	stynge	stang
2nd-person singular	styngest	stunge, stonge, stang
3rd-person singular	styngeth	stang
subjunctive singular	stynge	stunge1, stonge1
imperative singular		—
plural2	styngen, stynge	stungen, stunge, stongen, stonge
imperative plural	styngeth, stynge	—
participles	styngynge, styngende	stungen, stunge, stongen, stonge, ystungen, ystunge

¹ Replaced by the indicative in later Middle English.
² Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.

Related terms

• styng
• styngynge

Descendants

• English: sting
• Scots: sting

References

• “stingen, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-10-27.