stick-up
Britishnoun
verb
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slang (tr) to rob, esp at gunpoint
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informal to support or defend
stick up for oneself
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Project from a surface, as in That little cowlick of his sticks up no matter what you do . [Early 1400s]
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Put up a poster or notice, as in Will you stick up this announcement on the bulletin board? [Late 1700s]
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Rob, especially at gunpoint, as in The gang concentrated on sticking up liquor stores and gas stations . This usage, dating from the mid-1800s, gave rise to the colloquial phrase, stick 'em up , a robber's order to a victim to raise his or her hands above the head. [1930s]
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.
Freddie Mercury, a young pit bull mix — brown, with pretty chestnut eyes and big, stick-up ears — was adopted from the Philly Bully Team as a happy, friendly puppy.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 14, 2022
Omar was based on stick-up men Simon and Burns had encountered in real life, but Williams made the character his own.
From Washington Post • Feb. 2, 2022
Deutsche Bank then had to acknowledge the size of this government stick-up as its stock price proceeded to drop more than 20% in a fortnight.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 30, 2016
This way, the inappropriate joke is never entered into the record, but the stick-up is preserved for a judge and a jury to see.
From The Verge • Aug. 14, 2014
It was encircled by the stiffest of stick-up collars, which custom decreed could be worn only by the Sixth.
From Stalky & Co. by Kipling, Rudyard
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.
