What does "stound" mean?
An hour.
Stound
/staʊnd/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Uncommon ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: An hour.
- Grammar: stound is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: moment, period, throw.
- Usage evidence: What booth wilt thou have? our king reply'd / Now tell me in this stound
How to use "stound"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "stound" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "stound" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "stound" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "stound" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "stound" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "moment" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "stound", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An hour. dialectal, obsolete
"What booth wilt thou have? our king reply'd / Now tell me in this stound"
- 2 A stand; a stop. UK, dialectal
- 3 A receptacle for holding small beer.
"Will Ardnamurchan never end? We're four stounds in a metal box [...]"
- 4 A tide, season. obsolete
- 5 A time, length of time, hour, while. archaic, dialectal
"He lay and slept, and swet a stound, / And became whole and sound."
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 A brief span of time, moment, instant. archaic, dialectal
"Listen to me a little stound."
- 7 A moment or instance of urgency; exigence.
- 8 A sharp or sudden pain; a shock, an attack. dialectal
"No wonder that they cried unto the Lord, and felt a stound of despair shake their courage"
- 9 A stroke or blow (from an object or weapon); (by extension) a lashing; scourging
"How many pipes, as many sounds Do still impart To your Sonne's hart / As many deadly wounds : How many strokes, as many stounds, Each stroke a dart, Each stound a smart, Poore captive me confounds."
- 10 A fit, an episode or sudden outburst of emotion; a rush.
"Several stounds of pain in the cleft between great and second toe (anterior tibial nerve). I forget which side, but I think it was the right. Slight pains in left temple, > pressure. Pain in upper part of right eyeball."
- 11 Astonishment; amazement.
"Lightly he started up out of that stound."
Verb
- 1 To hurt, pain, smart. dialectal, intransitive, obsolete
"Your wrath, weak boy ? Tremble at mine unless Retraction follow close upon the heels Of that late stounding insult […]"
- 2 To stand still; stop. intransitive, obsolete
- 3 To be in pain or sorrow, mourn. dialectal, intransitive, obsolete
- 4 To stop to listen; pause. UK, dialectal, intransitive
- 5 To long or pine after, desire. dialectal, intransitive, obsolete
"Recently weaned children "stound after the breast.""
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"What booth wilt thou have? our king reply'd / Now tell me in this stound"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "stound"?
Common synonyms include: moment, period, throw.
How do you use "stound" in a sentence?
What booth wilt thou have? our king reply'd / Now tell me in this stound
How do you pronounce "stound"?
Pronounced /staʊnd/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English stond, stounde, stound (“hour, time, season, moment”), from Old English stund (“a period of time, while, hour, occasion”), from Proto-West Germanic *stundu, from Proto-Germanic *stundō (“point in time, hour”), from Proto-Indo-European *stut- (“prop”), from Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- (“to stand”). Cognate with Scots stound (“while, period of time, moment, sudden pain, pang, stroke, blow”), dated Dutch stond (“hour, time, moment”), Low German Stund (“hour”), German Stunde (“hour”), Danish stund (“time, while”), and Swedish stund (“time, while”). Compare Middle English stunden (“to linger, stay, remain for a while”), Icelandic stunda (“to frequent, pursue”). Related to stand.
Etymology 2
From Middle English stounden, stunden (“to linger, stay, remain for a while”), from Old English *stundian, from Proto-West Germanic *stundōn, from Proto-Germanic *stundōną. Cognate with German stunden (“to defer payment, give time to pay”), Icelandic stunda (“to frequent, pursue”). More at stand.
Etymology 3
From Middle English stound, stonde, stoonde, ston, from Old English stond (“a stand”). Compare stand.