Meaning
hardship, privation
- difficulty
In a sentence
I suoi nonni hanno vissuto tra gli stenti durante la guerra.
His grandparents lived in hardship during the war.
Con questo rumore, sento a stento la tua voce.
With this noise, I can barely hear your voice.
Hai mai passato un periodo di stento?
Have you ever gone through a period of hardship?
Word forms (2)
| Word | Word forms |
|---|---|
| stento | masculine · singular |
| stenti | masculine · plural |
Usage notes
- Often appears in fixed expressions like a stento and with verbs like vivere, tirare avanti, or guadagnarsi da vivere.
- A stento usually means 'barely/with difficulty,' not physical hardship alone. Don't confuse the noun stento with the adverbial phrase.
- More literary or elevated than difficoltà in many contexts; common in writing and idioms, less common in everyday casual speech alone.