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Synonyms

make stick

Idioms  

  1. Make effective or permanent, as in They tried to appeal but our lawyers made the verdict stick. This idiom uses stick in the sense of “adhere.” [First half of 1900s]

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.

In both cases, the prosecutors pursued not the most serious charge, but the one they could most make stick.

From Slate • Apr. 11, 2019

Then how is it that so many have found the charge so easy to make, and make stick?

From Time • Oct. 31, 2016

Brought into the Leeds academy by Stuart Lancaster, the man who now coaches him for England, Care had his next choice to make: stick with his hometown club, or risk sinking in a bigger pond.

From BBC • Feb. 6, 2014

Usually, defamation is a charge that’s notoriously hard to make stick in the American legal system.

From Salon • Jan. 30, 2014

The cabins was near a creek where willows grew and we'd make stick horses out of 'em.

From Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves: Volume XVI, Texas Narratives, Part 3 by United States. Work Projects Administration

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.