What distinguishes the functional capability of a wasp's smooth stinger from a honey bee’s barbed stinger?

Wasps possess smooth stingers that allow them to inject venom repeatedly without dying, unlike the honey bee’s barbed stinger which usually remains embedded, leading to the bee's death.

The mechanism of stinging is a critical functional difference between wasps and honey bees. Honey bees possess stingers that are barbed; when used against thick-skinned victims like mammals, this barb causes the stinger to become lodged in the target tissue. This results in the separation of the venom sac and the bee's demise. Conversely, wasps have smooth stingers. This smooth surface allows them to retract the stinger after injecting venom, enabling them to defend their territory or nest multiple times against a perceived threat without suffering fatal consequences themselves.