dipstick
Americannoun
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dipsticks
plural
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a rod for measuring the depth of a liquid; especially, a thin metal rod used to measure the oil level in the crankcase of an automotive engine.
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Slang. fool; jerk.
noun
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a graduated rod or strip dipped into a container to indicate the fluid level
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slang a fool
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of dipstick
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The MP has suffered from menopause-induced UTIs for more than a decade but said the "dipstick" test usually used to diagnose an infection was not sensitive enough.
From BBC ● May 21, 2025
Eventually, I found the dipstick which reads nothing.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 23, 2022
But we do like to check in on how things are progressing, which means occasionally pulling the dipstick on the oil pan.
From Fox News ● Mar. 26, 2020
A mechanic will know to check the oil dipstick for water droplets, look for water-damaged cylinders, and change the oil and transmission fluid, among other things.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 8, 2019
How many chances do you get to show that the guy who runs the entire city school system is an even bigger dipstick than you are?
From "Ungifted" by Gordon Korman
What if these two dipsticks had been armed?
From Slate ● Jun. 21, 2022
If we try to repair our microwaves or printers, we’ll quickly be discouraged by their complexity; many cars produced today lack even dipsticks to check their oil levels.
From The New Yorker ● Apr. 30, 2019
Squatting along a metal fence, Hazaras, Tajiks, Pashtuns, Uzbeks and Baluchis from all corners of the country watch the local drivers move through a fleet of dilapidated pickups — raising hoods, inspecting dipsticks.
From New York Times ● Oct. 18, 2012
Rupert Murdoch's Sun newspaper has ridiculed Cameron and Osborne as "dipsticks" and mocked their privileged backgrounds.
From Reuters ● May 28, 2012
While Danny pumps gas and checks dipsticks, the driver quietly approaches two oil riggers on their way to Idaho who have come to rent a trailer hitch.
From Time Magazine Archive
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
