shtick

or shtik

[ shtik ]

/ ʃtɪk /

noun Slang.

(especially in comic acting) a routine or piece of business inserted to gain a laugh or draw attention to oneself.

one's special interest, talent, etc.

Nearby words

Origin of shtick

1955–60; < Yiddish shtik pranks, whims, literally, piece < Middle High German stücke, Old High German stucki (German Stück); cf. stucco

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for shtick

Critics who are less bullish on The Crazy Ones bemoan all of this, protesting that the Robin Williams shtick is worn out.
‘The Michael J. Fox Show’ & Robin Williams’s ‘The Crazy Ones’ Are Fall’s Best New Sitcoms|Kevin Fallon|September 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He'll talk up his Senate ambitions for awhile, bask in the political limelight, and then stick with his current shtick.
Senator Geraldo Rivera? Seems Unlikely the Fox News Pundit Will Run|Howard Kurtz|February 2, 2013|DAILY BEAST
And the dupes are the folks who bought into the shtick, carrying signs at Tea Party rallies that read “Glenn Beck is my hero.”
Glenn Beck Attempts a Laughable Makeover as a Libertarian|John Avlon|January 12, 2013|DAILY BEAST
One reason younger audiences have not yet embraced the videos may be that the shtick feels stale.
Yo, Yo, Yo, It’s Chanukah: Hip-Hop Lights the Menorah|Eli Lake|December 7, 2012|DAILY BEAST

She generated howls of laughter as she launched into her “do the math” shtick about the “hair and makeup” handicap.
Former Wall Street Executive Sallie Krawcheck Critiques Financial Reform Policy|Allan Dodds Frank|October 16, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Thin will ye tell me, Mrs. Ryan, why didn't they shtick till it?
Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 150, January 26, 1916|Various
He handed the cob to the waiter, and asked, "Will you plaze put some more beans on my shtick?"
Science in the Kitchen.|Mrs. E. E. Kellogg
It was "the shtick" which kept things together so far as they were kept so at all.
Disturbed Ireland|Bernard H. Becker
Why, if it kim to a foight, the bastes could run underneath, and shtick their spears through the flure.
The Rajah of Dah|George Manville Fenn
He never said a word but to take the shtick and fire me dead with it on the sthrand.
Humours of Irish Life|Various

British Dictionary definitions for shtick

shtick

schtick

/ (ʃtɪk) /

noun

slang a comedian's routine; act; piece

Word Origin for shtick

C20: from Yiddish shtik piece, from Middle High German stücke

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

Word Origin and History for shtick

shtick

also schtick, 1959, from Yiddish shtik "an act, gimmick," literally "a piece, slice," from Middle High German stücke "piece, play," from Old High German stucki (see stock (n.1)).