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drumstick

American  
[druhm-stik] / ˈdrʌmˌstɪk /

noun

  1. a stick for beating a drum.

  2. the meaty leg of a chicken, duck, turkey, or other fowl.


drumstick British  
/ ˈdrʌmˌstɪk /

noun

  1. a stick used for playing a drum

  2. the lower joint of the leg of a cooked fowl

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of drumstick

First recorded in 1580–90; drum 1 + stick 1

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Vocabulary lists containing drumstick

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.

Much like that final drumstick you probably shouldn’t have eaten, equities spent last week digesting their gains.

From Barron's • Dec. 7, 2025

The researchers found that in birds, the tibial joint surfaces have curved arcs, and the shortened fibula is able to roll within the bird's drumstick for about its length relative to the tibia.

From Science Daily • Nov. 20, 2024

Cut to a close-up of a happy wife biting into a drumstick.

From New York Times • Nov. 29, 2023

After that, Hernandez said, he snatched a drumstick out of her hands.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 17, 2023

Lefty was waiting for us on the stoop, munching on a chicken drumstick.

From "Dragonwings" by Laurence Yep

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