Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Stick

Stick

,
Noun.
[OE.
sticke
, AS.
sticca
; akin to
stician
to stab, prick, pierce, G.
stecken
a stick, staff, OHG.
steccho
, Icel.
stik
a stick. See
Stick
,
Verb.
T.
.]
1.
A small shoot, or branch, separated, as by a cutting, from a tree or shrub; also, any stem or branch of a tree, of any size, cut for fuel or timber.
Withered
sticks
to gather, which might serve
Against a winter’s day.
Milton.
2.
Any long and comparatively slender piece of wood, whether in natural form or shaped with tools; a rod; a wand; a staff;
as, the
stick
of a rocket; a walking
stick
.
3.
Anything shaped like a stick;
as, a
stick
of wax
.
4.
A derogatory expression for a person; one who is inert or stupid;
as, an odd
stick
; a poor
stick
.
[Colloq.]
5.
(Print.)
A composing stick. See under
Composing
. It is usually a frame of metal, but for posters, handbills, etc., one made of wood is used.
6.
A thrust with a pointed instrument; a stab.
A stick of eels
,
twenty-five eels.
[Prov. Eng.]
–
Stick chimney
,
a chimney made of sticks laid crosswise, and cemented with clay or mud, as in some log houses.
[U.S.]
–
Stick insect
,
(Zool.)
,
any one of various species of wingless orthopterous insects of the family
Phasmidae
, which have a long round body, resembling a stick in form and color, and long legs, which are often held rigidly in such positions as to make them resemble small twigs. They thus imitate the branches and twigs of the trees on which they live. The common American species is
Diapheromera femorata
. Some of the Asiatic species are more than a foot long.
–
To cut one's stick
, or
To cut stick
,
to run away.
[Slang]
De Quincey.

Stick

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Stuck
(
Obs.
Sticked
);
p. pr. & vb. n.
Sticking
.]
[OE.
stikien
, v.t. & i., combined with
steken
, whence E.
stuck
), AS.
stician
, v.t. & i., and (assumed)
stecan
, v.t.; akin to OFries.
steka
, OS.
stekan
, OHG.
stehhan
, G.
stechen
, and to Gr. [GREEK] to prick, Skr.
tij
to be sharp. Cf.
Distinguish
,
Etiquette
,
Extinct
,
Instigate
,
Instinct
,
Prestige
,
Stake
,
Steak
,
Stick
,
Noun.
,
Stigma
,
Stimulate
,
Sting
,
Stitch
in sewing,
Style
for or in writing.]
1.
To penetrate with a pointed instrument; to pierce; to stab; hence, to kill by piercing;
as, to
stick
a beast
.
And
sticked
him with bodkins anon.
Chaucer.
It was a shame . . . to
stick
him under the other gentleman's arm while he was redding the fray.
Sir W. Scott.
2.
To cause to penetrate; to push, thrust, or drive, so as to pierce;
as, to
stick
a needle into one's finger
.
Thou
stickest
a dagger in me.
Shakespeare
3.
To fasten, attach, or cause to remain, by thrusting in; hence, also, to adorn or deck with things fastened on as by piercing;
as, to
stick
a pin on the sleeve
.
My shroud of white,
stuck
all with yew.
Shakespeare
The points of spears are
stuck
within the shield.
Dryden.
4.
To set; to fix in;
as, to
stick
card teeth
.
5.
To set with something pointed;
as, to
stick
cards
.
6.
To fix on a pointed instrument; to impale;
as, to
stick
an apple on a fork
.
7.
To attach by causing to adhere to the surface;
as, to
stick
on a plaster; to
stick
a stamp on an envelope; also, to attach in any manner
.
8.
(Print.)
To compose; to set, or arrange, in a composing stick;
as, to
stick
type
.
[Cant]
9.
(Joinery)
To run or plane (moldings) in a machine, in contradistinction to working them by hand. Such moldings are said to be stuck.
10.
To cause to stick; to bring to a stand; to pose; to puzzle;
as, to
stick
one with a hard problem
.
[Colloq.]
11.
To impose upon; to compel to pay; sometimes, to cheat.
[Slang]
To stick out
,
to cause to project or protrude; to render prominent.

Stick

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To adhere;
as, glue
sticks
to the fingers; paste
sticks
to the wall
.
The green caterpillar breedeth in the inward parts of roses not blown, where the dew
sticketh
.
Bacon.
2.
To remain where placed; to be fixed; to hold fast to any position so as to be moved with difficulty; to cling; to abide; to cleave; to be united closely.
A friend that
sticketh
closer than a brother.
Prov. xviii. 24.
I am a kind of bur; I shall
stick
.
Shakespeare
If on your fame our sex a bolt has thrown,
'T will ever
stick
through malice of your own.
Young.
3.
To be prevented from going farther; to stop by reason of some obstacle; to be stayed.
I had most need of blessing, and “Amen”
Stuck
in my throat.
Shakespeare
The trembling weapon passed
Through nine bull hides, . . . and
stuck
within the last.
Dryden.
4.
To be embarrassed or puzzled; to hesitate; to be deterred, as by scruples; to scruple; – often with at.
They will
stick
long at part of a demonstration for want of perceiving the connection of two ideas.
Locke.
Some
stick
not to say, that the parson and attorney forged a will.
Arbuthnot.
5.
To cause difficulties, scruples, or hesitation.
This is the difficulty that
sticks
with the most reasonable.
Swift.
To stick by
.
(a)
To adhere closely to; to be firm in supporting
. “We are your only friends; stick by us, and we will stick by you.”
Davenant.
(b)
To be troublesome by adhering.
“I am satisfied to trifle away my time, rather than let it stick by me.”
Pope.
–
To stick out
.
(a)
To project; to be prominent.
“His bones that were not seen stick out.”
Job xxxiii. 21.
(b)
To persevere in a purpose; to hold out; as, the garrison stuck out until relieved.
[Colloq.]
–
To stick to
,
to be persevering in holding to;
as,
to stick to
a party or cause
.
“The advantage will be on our side if we stick to its essentials.”
Addison.
–
To stick up
,
to stand erect;
as, his hair
sticks up
.
–
To stick up for
,
to assert and defend;
as,
to stick up for
one's rights or for a friend
.
[Colloq.]
–
To stick upon
,
to dwell upon; not to forsake.
“If the matter be knotty, the mind must stop and buckle to it, and stick upon it with labor and thought.”
Locke.

Webster 1828 Edition

Stick

STICK

,
Noun.
[G. This word is connected with the verb to stick, with stock, stack, and other words having the like elements. The primary sense of the root is to thrust, to shoot, and to set.]
1.
The small shoot or branch of a tree or shrub, cut off; a rod; also, a staff; as, to strike one with a stick.
2.
Any stem of a tree, of any size, cut for fuel or timber. It is applied in America to any long and slender piece of timber, round or square, from the smallest size to the largest, used in the frames of buildings; as a stick of timber for a post, a beam or a rafter.
3.
Many instruments, long and slender, are called sticks; as the composing stick of printers.
4.
A thrust with a pointed instrument that penetrates a body; a stab.
Stick of eels, the number of twenty five eels. A bind contains ten sticks.

STICK

,
Verb.
T.
pret. and pp. stuck. [G., to sting or prick, to stick, to adhere.]
1.
To pierce; to stab; to cause to enter, as a pointed instrument; hence, to kill by piercing; as, to stick a beast in slaughter. [A common use of the word.]
2.
To thrust in; to fasten or cause to remain by piercing; as, to stick a pin on the sleeve.
3.
To fasten; to attach by causing to adhere to the surface; as, to stick on a patch or plaster; to stick on a thing with paste or glue.
4.
To set; to fix in; as, to stick card teeth.
5.
To set with something pointed; as, to stick cards.
6.
To fix on a pointed instrument; as, to stick an apple on a fork.

STICK

,
Verb.
I.
1.
To adhere; to hold to by cleaving to the surface, as by tenacity or attraction; as, glue sticks to the fingers; paste sticks to the wall, and causes paper to stick.
I will cause the fish of thy rivers to stick to thy scales. Ezekiel 29.
2.
To be united; to be inseparable; to cling fast to, as something reproachful.
If on your fame our sex a blot has thrown, twill ever stick, through malice of your own.
3.
To rest with the memory; to abide.
4.
To stop; to be impeded by adhesion or obstruction; as, the carriage sticks in the mire.
5.
To stop; to be arrested in a course.
My faltering tongue sticks at the sound.
6.
To stop; to hesitate. He sticks at no difficulty; he sticks at the commission of no crime; he sticks at nothing.
7.
To adhere; to remain; to resist efforts to remove.
I had most need of blessing, and amen stuck in my throat.
8.
To cause difficulties or scruples; to cause to hesitate.
This is the difficulty that sticks with the most reasonable--
9.
To be stopped or hindered from proceeding; as, a bill passed the senate, but stuck in the house of representatives.
They never doubted the commons; but heard all stuck in the lords house.
10.
To be embarrassed or puzzled.
They will stick long at part of a demonstration, for want of perceiving the connection between two ideals.
11.
To adhere closely in friendship and affection.
There is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. Proverbs 18.
To stick to, to adhere closely; to be constant; to be firm; to be persevering; as, to stick to a party or cause.
The advantage will be on our side, if we stick to its essentials.
To stick by,
1.
To adhere closely; to be constant; to be firm in supporting.
We are your only friends; stick by us, and we will stick by you.
2.
To be troublesome by adhering.
I am satisfied to trifle away my time, rather than let it stick by me.
To stick upon, to dwell upon; not to forsake.
If the matter be knotty, the mind must stop and buckle to it, and stick upon it with labor and thought. [Not elegant.]
To stick out, to project; to be prominent.
His bones that were not seen, stick out. Job 33.

Definition 2024

Stick

Stick

A 10-string Stick.
See also: stick

English

Noun

Stick ‎(plural Sticks)

  1. (Ireland) A member of the Official IRA.

Synonyms

  • Sticky

Proper noun

Stick

  1. (music) The Chapman Stick, an electric musical instrument devised by Emmett Chapman.

See also

Anagrams

stick

stick

See also: Stick

English

Noun

stick ‎(plural sticks)

  1. An elongated piece of wood or similar material, typically put to some use, for example as a wand or baton.
    1. a stick of wood
      A small, thin branch from a tree or bush; a twig; a branch. syn. transl.
      The beaver's dam was made out of sticks.
      The bird's nest was made out of sticks.‎
      • 2013 July-August, Henry Petroski, “Geothermal Energy”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 4:
        Energy has seldom been found where we need it when we want it. Ancient nomads, wishing to ward off the evening chill and enjoy a meal around a campfire, had to collect wood and then spend time and effort coaxing the heat of friction out from between sticks to kindle a flame.
    2. A relatively long, thin piece of wood, of any size. transl.
      I found several good sticks in the brush heap.
      What do you call a boomerang that won't come back? A stick.‎
      • 1887, August 23, “At Work on the Thistle”, in (Please provide the title of the work):
        It is a fine stick, about 70 feet long.
    3. (US) A timber board, especially a two by four (inches).
      I found enough sticks in dumpsters at construction sites to build my shed.‎
    4. A cane or walking stick (usually wooden, metal or plastic) to aid in walking. syn. transl.
      I don’t need my stick to walk, but it’s helpful.‎
      • 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 23, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
        The slightest effort made the patient cough. He would stand leaning on a stick and holding a hand to his side, and when the paroxysm had passed it left him shaking.
    5. A cudgel or truncheon (usually of wood, metal or plastic), especially one carried by police or guards.
      As soon as the fight started, the guards came in swinging their sticks.‎
    6. (carpentry) The vertical member of a cope-and-stick joint.
      • 1997, Joseph Beals, “Building Interior Doors”, in Doors, Taunton Press, ISBN 1561582042, page 82:
        When cutting the door parts, I cut all the copes first, then the sticks.
    7. (nautical) A mast or part of a mast of a ship; also, a yard.
    8. (figuratively) A piece (of furniture, especially if wooden). usage syn.
      We were so poor we didn't have one stick of furniture.‎
      • 1862, W.M. Thackeray, The Adventures of Philip, printed in Harper's New Monthly Magazine volume XXV edition, page 242:
        It is more than poor Philip is worth, with all his savings and his little sticks of furniture.
  2. Any roughly cylindrical (or rectangular) unit of a substance. transl.
    Sealing wax is available as a cylindrical or rectangular stick.‎
    1. a stick of butter
      (chiefly Canada, US) A small rectangular block, with a length several times its width, which contains by volume one half of a cup of shortening (butter, margarine or lard).
      The recipe calls for half a stick of butter.‎
    2. a stick of gum
      A standard rectangular (often thin) piece of chewing gum. transl.
      Don’t hog all that gum, give me a stick!‎
    3. (slang) A cigarette (usually a tobacco cigarette, less often a marijuana cigarette). syn.
      Cigarettes are taxed at one dollar per stick.‎
  3. Material or objects attached to a stick or the like.
    1. A bunch of something wrapped around or attached to a stick.
      (US) My parents bought us each a stick of cotton candy.‎
    2. (archaic) A scroll that is rolled around (mounted on, attached to) a stick.
      • 1611, The Bible, King James Version edition, Ezekiel 37:16:
        Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it […]
    3. (military) The structure to which a set of bombs in a bomber aircraft are attached and which drops the bombs when it is released. The bombs themselves and, by extension, any load of similar items dropped in quick succession such as paratroopers or containers. syn.
      • 2001, Raymond Mitchell, Commando Despatch Rider, ISBN 085052797X, page 70:
        Scores of transport planes streamed in to drop stick after stick of containers until the entire sky over the coast was polka-dotted with brightly coloured parachutes.
      • 2006, Farley Mowat, Aftermath: Travels in a Post-War World, ISBN 0811733386, page 200:
        A stick of bombs fell straight across Wotton; blew up half a dozen houses.
      • 2006, Holly Aho, From Here to There, ISBN 1411675401, page 48:
        James and I were in the same stick of five guys going through free fall school last September.
  4. A tool, control, or instrument shaped somewhat like a stick.
    1. (US, colloquial) A manual transmission, a vehicle equipped with a manual transmission, so called because of the stick-like, i.e. twig-like, control (the gear shift) with which the driver of such a vehicle controls its transmission. syn. transl.
      I grew up driving a stick, but many people my age didn’t.‎
      1. the gear-shift lever in a manual transmission car
        (US, colloquial, uncountable) Vehicles, collectively, equipped with manual transmissions.
        I grew up driving stick, but many people my age didn't.‎
    2. (aviation) The control column of an aircraft; a joystick. transl. (By convention, a wheel-like control mechanism with a handgrip on opposite sides, similar to the steering wheel ofan automobiles, is also called the "stick".)
    3. (aviation, uncountable) Use of the stick to control the aircraft.
      • 1941, Jay D. Blaufox, 33 Lessons in Flying, page 47:
        For example: in making a turn, should you throw on too much stick and not enough rudder, you'll sideslip.
    4. (computing) A memory stick.
      • 2007, May 1, “Business Traveler”, in Tech front: Alex Fethiere takes eleven notable portables for a high-tech test-drive:
        For ultimate presentation portability, a Powerpoint can be saved to a stick as images.
    5. (dated, letterpress typography) A composing stick, the tool used by compositors to assemble lines of type.
      • 1854, Thomas Ford, The Compositor's Handbook, page 125:
        […] although the headings may often be in other type, still, as these are composed in the same stick, they cannot fail to justify; […]
    6. (jazz, slang) The clarinet. (more often called the liquorice stick) syn.
      • 1948, Frederic Ramsey, Jr., “Deep Sea Rider”, in Charles Harvey, editor, Jazz Parody: Anthology of Jazz Fiction:
        Arsene, boy, ain't you worried about your clarinet? Where'd you leave that stick, man?
  5. (sports) A stick-like item:
    1. two hockey sticks, for the goalie at right
      a lacrosse stick
      (sports, generically) A long thin implement used to control a ball or puck in sports like hockey, polo, and lacrosse. transl.
      Tripping with the stick is a violation of the rules.‎
    2. (horse racing) The short whip carried by a jockey.
    3. (boardsports) A board as used in board sports, such as a surfboard, snowboard, or skateboard.
    4. (golf) The pole bearing a small flag that marks the hole. syn.
      His wedge shot bounced off the stick and went in the hole.‎
    5. (US, slang, uncountable) The cue used in billiards, pool, snooker, etc.
      His stroke with that two-piece stick is a good as anybody's in the club.‎
      1. The game of pool, or an individual pool game.
        He shoots a mean stick of pool.‎
  6. (sports, uncountable) Ability; specifically:
    1. (golf) The long-range driving ability of a golf club.
      • 1988, William Hallberg, The Rub of the Green, page 219:
        I doubted that the three iron was enough stick.
    2. (baseball) The potential hitting power of a specific bat.
    3. (baseball) General hitting ability.
      • 2002, May 19, “Just Need A Little Mo”, in New York Daily News:
        Vaughn has to hit and keep hitting or this will be another year when the Mets don't have enough stick to win.
    4. (field hockey or ice hockey) The potential accuracy of a hockey stick, implicating also the player using it.
  7. (slang, dated) A person or group of people. (Perhaps, in some senses, because people are, broadly speaking, tall and thin, like pieces of wood.)
    1. A thin or wiry person; particularly a flat-chested woman.
      • 1967, Cecelia Holland, Rakóssy, page 39:
        "She's a stick, this one. She lacks your—" he patted her left breast— "equipment."
    2. (magic) An assistant planted in the audience. syn.
      • 2001, Paul Quarrington, The Spirit Cabinet, page 255:
        The kid was a stick, a plant, a student from UNLV who picked up a few bucks nightly by saying the words "seven of hearts."
    3. (military aviation, from joystick) A fighter pilot.
      • 2001, John Darrell Sherwood, , ISBN [[Special:BookSources/0312979622 Fast Movers: America's Jet Pilots and the Vietnam Experience|0312979622 Fast Movers: America's Jet Pilots and the Vietnam Experience]]], page 30:
        Bill Kirk, described by Robin as a "**** of a stick," didn't even attend college until after the Vietnam War.
    4. (military, South Africa) A small group of (infantry) soldiers.
      • 2007, Bart Wolffe, Persona Non Grata, ISBN 1430304774, page 245:
        I remember when we dreaded the rain, as our stick of soldiers walked through the damp, tick-infested long grass of the Zambezi valley, […]
  8. Encouragement or punishment, or (resulting) vigour or other improved behavior.
    1. A negative stimulus or a punishment. (This sense derives from the metaphor of using a stick, a long piece of wood, to poke or beat a beast of burden to compel it to move forward. Compare carrot.)
      • 1998, January 23, “Judicial activism has ushered in hope”, in (Please provide the title of the work):
        What about contempt? Isn't it used by the judiciary as a stick to dissuade people from writing or talking about them?
    2. (slang, uncountable) Corporal punishment; beatings.
      • 1999, Eve McDougall, A Wicked Fist, ISBN 190155709X, page 69:
        The child killers got some stick. I saw a woman throw a basin of scalding water over a baby killer.
    3. (slang) Vigor; spirit; effort, energy, intensity.
      He really gave that digging some stick.‎ = he threw himself into the task of digging
      She really gave that bully some stick.‎ = she berated him (this sense melts into the previous sense, "punishment")
      Give it some stick!‎
      • 1979, Don Bannister, Sam Chard, ISBN 071000219X, page 185:
        'Choir gave it some stick on "Unto Us a Son is Born."' ¶ Cynthia nodded. ¶ 'It was always one of Russell's favourites. He makes them try hard on that.'
    4. (slang) Vigorous driving of a car; gas.
      • 2006, Martyn J. Pass & Dani Pass, Waiting for Red, ISBN 1905237553, page 163:
        Skunk really gave it some stick all the way to Caliban's place, we passed a good few Coppers but they all seemed to turn the blind eye.
  9. A measure.
    1. (obsolete) An English Imperial unit of length equal to 2 inches.
      • 1921, Elmer Davis, History of the New York Times, 1851-1921, page 61:
        There was another speech in that day's news — a speech which The Times printed on the front page because it was part of a front-page story, and in full — it was only two sticks long; printed in full just after the much longer invocation by the officiating clergyman […]
    2. (archaic, rare) A quantity of eels, usually 25. syn.
Usage notes
  • (furniture def. syn.): Generally used in the negative, or in contexts expressive of poverty or lack.
Synonyms
Derived terms

Note: Terms derived from the verb are found further below.

Translations

Verb

stick ‎(third-person singular simple present sticks, present participle sticking, simple past and past participle sticked)

  1. (carpentry) To cut a piece of wood to be the stick member of a cope-and-stick joint.

Etymology 2

From Middle English stiken ‎(“to stick, pierce, stab, remain embedded, be fastened”), from Old English stician ‎(“to pierce, stab, remain embedded, be fastened”), from Proto-Germanic *stikōną ‎(“to pierce, prick, be sharp”) (compare also the related *stikaną, whence West Frisian stekke, Low German steken, Dutch steken, German stechen; compare also Danish stikke, Swedish sticka), from Proto-Indo-European *steig- or *stig- ‎(“to pierce, prick, be sharp”).

Cognate with the first etymology (same PIE root, different paths through Germanic and Old English), to stitch, and to etiquette, via French étiquette – see there for further discussion.

Noun

stick ‎(uncountable)

  1. (motor racing) The traction of tires on the road surface.
  2. (fishing, uncountable) The amount of fishing line resting on the water surface before a cast; line stick.
    • 2004, Simon Gawesworth, Spey Casting, ISBN 0811701042, page 47:
      Problem: A lot of stick and a lack of energy on the forward stroke.
  3. A thrust with a pointed instrument; a stab.

Verb

stick ‎(third-person singular simple present sticks, present participle sticking, simple past and past participle stuck or (archaic) sticked)

  1. (intransitive) To become or remain attached; to adhere.
    The tape will not stick if it melts.‎
  2. (intransitive) To jam; to stop moving.
    The lever sticks if you push it too far up.‎
  3. (intransitive) To tolerate, to endure, to stick with.
    • 1998, Patrick McEvoy, Educating the Future GP: the course organizer's handbook, page 7:
      Why do most course organizers stick the job for less than five years?
  4. (intransitive) To persist.
    His old nickname stuck.‎
    • 2011 December 10, David Ornstein quoting David Moyes, “Arsenal 1-0 Everton”, in BBC Sport:
      "Our team did brilliantly to be in the game. We stuck at it and did a good job. This is disappointing but we'll think about the next game tomorrow."
  5. (intransitive) Of snow, to remain frozen on landing.
  6. (intransitive) To remain loyal; to remain firm.
    • 2007, Amanda Lamb, Smotherhood: Wickedly Funny Confessions from the Early Years:
      What I get from work makes me a better mother, and what I get from being a mother makes me a better journalist. At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it.
    Just stick to your strategy, and you will win.‎
  7. (intransitive) To hesitate, to be reluctant; to refuse.
    • 1743, Thomas Stackhouse, A Compleat Body of Speculative and Practical Divinity, edition 3 (London), page 524:
      The First-fruits were a common Oblation to their Deities; but the chief Part of their Worship consisted in sacrificiing Animals : And this they did out of a real Persuasion, that their Gods were pleased with their Blood, and were nourished with the Smoke, and Nidor of them; and therefore the more costly, they thought them the more acceptable, for which Reason, they stuck not sometimes to regale them with human Sacrifices.
    • 1740, James Blair, Our Saviour's divine sermon on the mount [...] explained, volume 3, page 26:
      And so careful were they to put off the Honour of great Actions from themselves, and to centre it upon God, that they stuck not sometimes to depreciate themselves that they might more effectually honour him.
    • (Can we date this quote?) John Locke
      They will stick long at part of a demonstration for want of perceiving the connection of two ideas.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Arbuthnot
      Some stick not to say, that the parson and attorney forged a will.
  8. (dated, intransitive) To cause difficulties, scruples, or hesitation.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Jonathan Swift
      This is the difficulty that sticks with the most reasonable.
  9. (transitive) To attach with glue or as if by gluing.
    Stick the label on the jar.‎
  10. (transitive) To place, set down (quickly or carelessly).
    Stick your bag over there and come with me.‎
    • 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 8, in Mr. Pratt's Patients:
      Afore we got to the shanty Colonel Applegate stuck his head out of the door. His temper had been getting raggeder all the time, and the sousing he got when he fell overboard had just about ripped what was left of it to ravellings.
  11. (transitive) To press (something with a sharp point) into something else.
    The balloon will pop when I stick this pin in it.‎
    to stick a needle into one's finger
    • (Can we date this quote?) Dryden
      The points of spears are stuck within the shield.
    1. (transitive, now only in dialects) To stab.
      • circa 1583, John Jewel, in a sermon republished in 1847 in The Works of John Jewel, Bishop of Salisbury, portion 2, page 969:
        In certain of their sacrifices they had a lamb, they sticked him, they killed him, and made sacrifice of him: this lamb was Christ the Son of God, he was killed, sticked, and made a sweet-smelling sacrifice for our sins.
      • 1809, Grafton's chronicle, or history of England, volume 2, page 135:
        […] would haue [=have] sticked him with a dagger […]
      • (Can we date this quote?) Sir Walter Scott
        It was a shame […] to stick him under the other gentleman's arm while he was redding the fray.
      • 1908, The Northeastern Reporter, volume 85, page 693:
        The defendant said he didn't shoot; "he sticked him with a knife."
  12. (transitive) To fix on a pointed instrument; to impale.
    to stick an apple on a fork
  13. (transitive, archaic) To adorn or deck with things fastened on as by piercing.
    • (Can we date this quote?) Shakespeare
      my shroud of white, stuck all with yew
  14. (transitive, gymnastics) To perform (a landing) perfectly.
    Once again, the world champion sticks the dismount.‎
  15. (botany, transitive) To propagate plants by cuttings.
    Stick cuttings from geraniums promptly.‎
  16. (transitive, printing, slang, dated) To compose; to set, or arrange, in a composing stick.
    to stick type
  17. (transitive, joinery) To run or plane (mouldings) in a machine, in contradistinction to working them by hand. Such mouldings are said to be stuck.
  18. (dated, transitive) To bring to a halt; to stymie; to puzzle.
    to stick somebody with a hard problem
  19. (transitive, slang, dated) To impose upon; to compel to pay; sometimes, to cheat.
Derived terms

Note: Terms derived from the noun are found above.

Translations
See also

Adjective

stick ‎(comparative sticker, superlative stickest)

  1. (informal) Likely to stick; sticking, sticky.
    A non-stick pan. A stick plaster.
    A sticker type of glue. The stickest kind of gum.
Usage notes
  • The adjective is more informal than nonstandard due to the prevalence of examples such as "non-stick pan" or "stick plaster".
  • The comparative and superlative remain nonstandard (vs. stickier and stickiest) and are sometimes seen inbetween quotation marks to reflect it.
Derived terms

Etymology 3

Possibly a metaphorical use of the first etymology ("twig, branch"), possibly derived from the Yiddish schtick.

Noun

stick ‎(plural sticks)

  1. (Britain, uncountable) Criticism or ridicule.
    • 2008, May 3, “Chris Roberts”, in It’s a stroll in the park!:
      I got some stick personally because of my walking attire. I arrived to training fully kitted out in sturdy walking boots.

Anagrams

Chinook Jargon

Etymology

From English stick.

Noun

stick

  1. stick
  2. wood, firewood
  3. tree, forest

German

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ʃtɪk/
  • Rhymes: -ɪk

Verb

stick

  1. Imperative singular of sticken.
  2. (colloquial) First-person singular present of sticken.

Swedish

Pronunciation

Noun

stick n

  1. a sting; a bite from an insect
  2. (card games) a trick

Declension

Inflection of stick 
Singular Plural
Indefinite Definite Indefinite Definite
Nominative stick sticket stick sticken
Genitive sticks stickets sticks stickens

Verb

stick

  1. imperative of sticka.

Etymology

From Middle English stikke ‎(“stick, rod, twig”), from Old English sticca ‎(“rod, twig”), from Proto-Germanic *stikkô, from Proto-Indo-European *steig- or *stig- ‎(“to pierce, prick, be sharp”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian Stikke ‎(“stick”), West Flemish stik ‎(“stick”).

Pronunciation

  • enPR: stĭk, IPA(key): /stɪk/
  • Rhymes: -ɪk
  • Homophone: stich

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