What did shakespeare mean by the word stint?

The word "stint" had several meanings in Shakespeare's time, including "to cease," "to stop," "to restrain," "to limit," and "to allot a certain amount." In the context of Shakespeare's plays, "stint" is most often used in the sense of "to cease" or "to stop." For example, in _Hamlet_ (Act III, Scene 2), Hamlet says to Ophelia, "Nymph, in thy orisons be all my sins remembered." Ophelia replies, "Good my lord, how sweet you talk to me!" Hamlet responds, "Stint thy tongue!" Here, Hamlet is telling Ophelia to stop talking.

Another example of the use of "stint" in Shakespeare's plays is in _The Tempest_ (Act I, Scene 2), when Prospero says to Ariel, "Thou dost, and thou dost not, serve me well; Thou liest, thou jest, and thou art cruel or soft, A devil, a born devil, on whose nature Nurture can never stick; on whom my pains, Human or divine, seem strange, bestowed But dost thou love me, master? I do." Prospero replies, "Then is thy love a bittered torment; O! would I had never met thee! _Stint_ thee, and let thy flood, the pest, _stint_ flow." Here, Prospero is telling Ariel to stop talking and to stop his actions.

The word "stint" is a relatively uncommon word in modern English, but it is still used in some idiomatic expressions, such as "to put a stop to" and "to set a limit on."