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stick

2
[stik]
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verb (used with object), stuck, stick·ing.
  1. to pierce or puncture with something pointed, as a pin, dagger, or spear; stab: to stick one's finger with a needle.
  2. to kill by this means: to stick a pig.
  3. to thrust (something pointed) in, into, through, etc.: to stick a needle into a pincushion.
  4. to fasten in position by thrusting a point or end into something: to stick a peg in a pegboard.
  5. to fasten in position by or as if by something thrust through: to stick a painting on the wall.
  6. to put on or hold with something pointed; impale: to stick a marshmallow on a fork.
  7. to decorate or furnish with things piercing the surface: to stick a cushion full of pins.
  8. to furnish or adorn with things attached or set here and there: to stick shelves full of knickknacks.
  9. to place upon a stick or pin for exhibit: to stick butterflies.
  10. to thrust or poke into a place or position indicated: to stick one's head out of the window.
  11. to place or set in a specified position; put: Stick the chair in the corner.
  12. to fasten or attach by causing to adhere: to stick a stamp on a letter.
  13. to bring to a standstill; render unable to proceed or go back (usually used in the passive): The car was stuck in the mud.
  14. Carpentry. to start (a nail).
  15. Ceramics. to join (pieces of partially hardened clay) together, using slip as an adhesive.
  16. Chiefly British Informal. to tolerate; endure: He couldn't stick the job more than three days.
  17. to confuse or puzzle; bewilder; perplex; nonplus: He was stuck by the very first problem on the test.
  18. Informal. to impose something disagreeable upon (a person or persons), as a large bill or a difficult task: The committee persistently stuck him with fund collection.
  19. Informal. to cheat.
  20. Slang: Often Vulgar. to go to hell with: often used imperatively.
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verb (used without object), stuck, stick·ing.
  1. to have the point piercing or embedded in something: The arrow stuck in the tree.
  2. to remain attached by adhesion.
  3. to hold, cleave, or cling: The young rider stuck to the back of his terrified horse.
  4. to remain persistently or permanently: a fact that sticks in the mind.
  5. to remain firm, as in resolution, opinion, statement, or attachment; hold faithfully, as to a promise or bargain.
  6. to keep or remain steadily or unremittingly, as to a task, undertaking, or the like: to stick to a job until it is finished.
  7. to become fastened, hindered, checked, or stationary by some obstruction: Her zipper stuck halfway up.
  8. to be at a standstill, as from difficulties: I'm stuck on this problem.
  9. to be embarrassed or puzzled; hesitate or scruple (usually followed by at).
  10. to be thrust or placed so as to extend, project, or protrude (usually followed by through, from, out, up, etc.).
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noun
  1. a thrust with a pointed instrument; stab.
  2. a stoppage or standstill.
  3. something causing delay or difficulty.
  4. the quality of adhering or of causing things to adhere.
  5. something causing adhesion.
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Verb Phrases
  1. stick around, Informal. to wait in the vicinity; linger: If you had stuck around, you'd have seen the fireworks.
  2. stick by/to, to maintain one's attachment or loyalty to; remain faithful to: They vowed to stick by one another no matter what happened.
  3. stick out, to extend; protrude: Stick out your tongue. Your shirttail is sticking out.
  4. stick up, Informal. to rob, especially at gunpoint: A lone gunman stuck up the gas station.
  5. stick up for, to speak in favor of; come to the defense of; support: She always sticks up for him, even though he doesn't deserve it.
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Idioms
  1. stick it, Slang: Often Vulgar. shove1(def 7).
  2. stick it to (someone), Slang. to take advantage of; treat unfairly.
  3. stick it out, to endure something patiently to the end or its completion: It was a long, dusty trip but we stuck it out.
  4. stick it up your/one's ass, Slang: Vulgar. shove1(def 8).
  5. stick one's neck out. neck(def 23).
  6. stick to one's guns. gun1(def 17).
  7. stick to the/one's ribs, to be substantial and nourishing, as a hearty meal: Hot cereal sticks to your ribs on those cold winter mornings.
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Origin of stick

2
before 900; Middle English stiken, Old English stician to pierce, thrust; akin to German stechen to sting, Latin -stīg- in instīgāre (see instigate), Greek stízein (see stigma)
Related formsstick·a·ble, adjectivestick·a·bil·i·ty, nounre·stick·a·ble, adjective

Synonyms for stick

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1. penetrate, spear. 6. transfix. 9. pin. 12. glue, cement, paste. 22. Stick, adhere, cohere mean to cling to or be tightly attached to something. Adhere implies that one kind of material clings tenaciously to another; cohere adds the idea that a thing is attracted to and held by something like itself: Particles of sealing wax cohere and form a mass that will adhere to tin. Stick, a more colloquial and general term, is used particularly when a third kind of material is involved: A gummed label will stick to a package. 29. stickle, waver, doubt.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for stick to

assail, contravene, tar, levy, expose, exact, wreak, contend, squabble, disagree, quibble, dispute, quarrel, vindicate, avenge, follow, guide, attend, escort, lead
British Dictionary definitions for stick to

stick to

verb (preposition, mainly intr)
  1. (also tr) to adhere or cause to adhere to
  2. to continue constantly at
  3. to remain faithful to
  4. not to move or digress fromthe speaker stuck closely to his subject
  5. stick to someone's fingers informal to be stolen by someone
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stick

1
noun
  1. a small thin branch of a tree
    1. any long thin piece of wood
    2. such a piece of wood having a characteristic shape for a special purposea walking stick; a hockey stick
    3. a baton, wand, staff, or rod
  3. an object or piece shaped like a sticka stick of celery; a stick of dynamite
  4. See control stick
  5. informal the lever used to change gear in a motor vehicle
  6. nautical a mast or yard
  7. printing See composing stick
    1. a group of bombs arranged to fall at intervals across a target
    2. a number of paratroops jumping in sequence
  9. slang
    1. verbal abuse, criticismI got some stick for that blunder
    2. physical power, force (esp in the phrase give it some stick)
  10. (usually plural) a piece of furniturethese few sticks are all I have
  11. (plural) informal a rural area considered remote or backward (esp in the phrase in the sticks)
  12. (plural) Canadian West coast and Northwestern Canadian informal the wooded interior part of the country
  13. (plural) hockey a declaration made by the umpire if a player's stick is above the shoulders
  14. (plural) goalposts
  15. US obsolete a cannabis cigarette
  16. a means of coercion
  17. informal a dull boring person
  18. (usually preceded by old) informal a familiar name for a personnot a bad old stick
  19. in a cleft stick in a difficult position
  20. wrong end of the stick a complete misunderstanding of a situation, explanation, etc
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verb sticks, sticking or sticked
  1. to support (a plant) with sticks; stake
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Word Origin for stick

Old English sticca; related to Old Norse stikka, Old High German stecca

stick

2
verb sticks, sticking or stuck
  1. (tr) to pierce or stab with or as if with something pointed
  2. to thrust or push (a sharp or pointed object) or (of a sharp or pointed object) to be pushed into or through another object
  3. (tr) to fasten in position by pushing or forcing a point into somethingto stick a peg in a hole
  4. (tr) to fasten in position by or as if by pins, nails, etcto stick a picture on the wall
  5. (tr) to transfix or impale on a pointed object
  6. (tr) to cover with objects piercing or set in the surface
  7. (when intr, foll by out, up, through, etc) to put forward or be put forward; protrude or cause to protrudeto stick one's head out of the window
  8. (tr) informal to place or put in a specified positionstick your coat on this chair
  9. to fasten or be fastened by or as if by an adhesive substancestick the pages together; they won't stick
  10. (tr) informal to cause to become sticky
  11. (when tr, usually passive) to come or cause to come to a standstillwe were stuck for hours in a traffic jam; the wheels stuck
  12. (intr) to remain for a long timethe memory sticks in my mind
  13. (tr) slang, mainly British to tolerate; abideI can't stick that man
  14. (intr) to be reluctant
  15. (tr; usually passive) informal to cause to be at a loss; baffle, puzzle, or confuseI was totally stuck for an answer
  16. (tr) slang to force or impose something unpleasant onthey stuck me with the bill for lunch
  17. (tr) to kill by piercing or stabbing
  18. stick in one's throat or stick in one's craw informal to be difficult, or against one's conscience, for one to accept, utter, or believe
  19. stick one's nose into See nose (def. 17)
  20. stick to the ribs informal (of food) to be hearty and satisfying
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noun
  1. the state or condition of adhering
  2. informal a substance causing adhesion
  3. obsolete something that causes delay or stoppage
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See also stick around, stick at, stick by, stick down, stick out, stick to, stick together, stick-up, stick with, stuck

Word Origin for stick

Old English stician; related to Old High German stehhan to sting, Old Norse steikja to roast on a spit
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 stick to

stick

n.

Old English sticca "rod, twig, spoon," from Proto-Germanic *stikkon- "pierce, prick" (cf. Old Norse stik, Old High German stehho, German Stecken "stick, staff"), from PIE *steig- "to stick; pointed" (see stick (v.)). Meaning "staff used in a game" is from 1670s (originally billiards); meaning "manual gearshift lever" first recorded 1914. Stick-ball is attested from 1824. Alliterative connection of sticks and stones is recorded from mid-15c.

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stick

v.

Old English stician "to pierce, stab," also "to remain embedded, be fastened," from Proto-Germanic *stik- "pierce, prick, be sharp" (cf. Old Saxon stekan, Old Frisian steka, Dutch stecken, Old High German stehhan, German stechen "to stab, prick"), from PIE *steig- (cf. Latin in-stigare "to goad;" Greek stizein "to prick, puncture," stigma "mark made by a pointed instrument;" Old Persian tigra- "sharp, pointed;" Avestan tighri- "arrow;" Lithuanian stingu "to remain in place;" Russian stegati "to quilt").

Figurative sense of "to remain permanently in mind" is attested from c.1300. Transitive sense of "to fasten (something) in place" is attested from late 13c. Stick out "project" is recorded from 1560s. Slang stick around "remain" is from 1912; stick it as a rude bit of advice is first recorded 1922.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper

Idioms and Phrases with stick to

stick to

1

Remain loyal; see stick by.

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2

Persist in or continue applying oneself to, as in I'm sticking to my opinion that he's basically honest, or The music teacher told John to stick to the clarinet, at least until the end of the year. [First half of 1500s] Also see stick to one's guns; stick to one's last.

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stick

In addition to the idioms beginning with stick

  • stick around
  • stick at
  • stick by
  • stick in one's craw
  • stick it
  • stick it to someone
  • stick one's neck out
  • stick out
  • stick to
  • stick together
  • stick to one's guns
  • stick to one's last
  • stick to the ribs
  • stick up
  • stick up for
  • stick with
  • sticky fingers

also see:

  • carrot and stick
  • get on the stick
  • make stick
  • more than one can shake a stick at
  • short end of the stick
  • stand (stick) up for
  • wrong end of the stick

Also see understuck.

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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.