# stinger

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈstɪŋ.ə(ɹ)/ · frequency rank #32,195

## Definitions
1. A pointed portion of an insect or arachnid used for attack.
2. Anything that is used to sting, as a means of attack.
3. Anything, such as an insult, that stings mentally or psychologically.
4. A cocktail of brandy and crème de menthe.
5. A portable bed of nails to puncture car tires, used by police and military forces.
6. A minor neurological injury of the spine characterized by a shooting or stinging pain down one arm, followed by numbness and weakness.
7. A station identifier on television or radio played between shows.
8. A scene shown on films or television shows after the credits.
9. A nonlethal grenade using rubber instead of shrapnel, more commonly called a sting grenade.
10. A short musical phrase or chord used non-diegetically to dramatic or emphatic effect.
11. A final note played at the end of a military march.
12. An extension cord.
13. A stinging nettle.
14. Chironex fleckeri, an extremely venomous Australian box jellyfish.
15. An improvised heating element used to boil or heat water in prison.

## Etymology
From sting + -er. Both figurative and literal senses appeared in the 16th century.

## Easily confused with
- **stoner** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-stoner)
- **stingy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-stingy)
- **stunner** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-stunner)
- **swinger** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-swinger)
- **stronger** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-stronger)
- **stranger** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-stranger)
- **stringer** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-stringer)
- **stringed** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stinger-vs-stringed)
- **sting** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sting-vs-stinger)
- **singer** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/singer-vs-stinger)
- **sinner** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sinner-vs-stinger)
- **sanger** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sanger-vs-stinger)
- **shiner** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/shiner-vs-stinger)
- **sinker** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sinker-vs-stinger)
- **singers** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/singers-vs-stinger)
- **sticker** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/sticker-vs-stinger)
- **skinner** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/skinner-vs-stinger)
- **spinner** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/spinner-vs-stinger)
- **Steiner** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/steiner-vs-stinger)
- **stagger** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/stagger-vs-stinger)

## Common misspellings (11)
`sitnger`, `sstinger`, `stigner`, `stinegr`, `stingerr`, `stingger`, `stingre`, `stinnger`, `stniger`, `sttinger`, `tsinger`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/stinger