stick
1 Americannoun
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a branch or shoot of a tree or shrub that has been cut or broken off.
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a relatively long and slender piece of wood.
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a long piece of wood for use as fuel, in carpentry, etc.
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a rod or wand.
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a baton.
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Chiefly British. a walking stick or cane.
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a club or cudgel.
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something that serves to goad or coerce.
The threat of unemployment was the stick that kept the workers toiling overtime.
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a long, slender piece or part of anything.
a stick of candy; sticks of celery.
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any of four equal parts in a pound of butter or margarine.
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Sports. an implement used to drive or propel a ball or puck, as a crosse or a hockey stick.
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Aeronautics. a lever, usually with a handle, by which the longitudinal and lateral motions of an airplane are controlled.
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Nautical. a mast or spar.
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Printing. composing stick.
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Informal. the sticks, any region distant from cities or towns, as rural districts; the country.
Having lived in a large city all his life, he found it hard to adjust to the sticks.
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Military.
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a group of bombs so arranged as to be released in a row across a target.
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the bomb load.
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Informal. stick shift.
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Slang. a marijuana cigarette.
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Informal. an unenthusiastic or uninteresting person.
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Informal. a portion of liquor, as brandy, added to a nonalcoholic drink.
verb (used with object)
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to furnish (a plant, vine, etc.) with a stick or sticks in order to prop or support.
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Printing. to set (type) in a composing stick.
idioms
verb (used with object)
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to pierce or puncture with something pointed, as a pin, dagger, or spear; stab.
to stick one's finger with a needle.
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to kill by this means.
to stick a pig.
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to thrust (something pointed) in, into, through, etc..
to stick a needle into a pincushion.
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to fasten in position by thrusting a point or end into something.
to stick a peg in a pegboard.
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to fasten in position by or as if by something thrust through.
to stick a painting on the wall.
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to put on or hold with something pointed; impale.
to stick a marshmallow on a fork.
- Synonyms:
- transfix
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to decorate or furnish with things piercing the surface.
to stick a cushion full of pins.
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to furnish or adorn with things attached or set here and there.
to stick shelves full of knickknacks.
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to place upon a stick or pin for exhibit.
to stick butterflies.
- Synonyms:
- pin
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to thrust or poke into a place or position indicated.
to stick one's head out of the window.
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to place or set in a specified position; put.
Stick the chair in the corner.
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to fasten or attach by causing to adhere.
to stick a stamp on a letter.
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to bring to a standstill; render unable to proceed or go back (usually used in the passive).
The car was stuck in the mud.
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Carpentry. to start (a nail).
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Ceramics. to join (pieces of partially hardened clay) together, using slip as an adhesive.
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Chiefly British Informal. to tolerate; endure.
He couldn't stick the job more than three days.
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to confuse or puzzle; bewilder; perplex; nonplus.
He was stuck by the very first problem on the test.
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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.
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Informal. to cheat.
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Slang: Often Vulgar. to go to hell with: often used imperatively.
verb (used without object)
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to have the point piercing or embedded in something.
The arrow stuck in the tree.
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to remain attached by adhesion.
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to hold, cleave, or cling.
The young rider stuck to the back of his terrified horse.
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to remain persistently or permanently.
a fact that sticks in the mind.
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to remain firm, as in resolution, opinion, statement, or attachment; hold faithfully, as to a promise or bargain.
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to keep or remain steadily or unremittingly, as to a task, undertaking, or the like.
to stick to a job until it is finished.
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to become fastened, hindered, checked, or stationary by some obstruction.
Her zipper stuck halfway up.
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to be at a standstill, as from difficulties.
I'm stuck on this problem.
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to be embarrassed or puzzled; hesitate or scruple (usually followed byat ).
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to be thrust or placed so as to extend, project, or protrude (usually followed by through, from, out, up, etc.).
noun
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a thrust with a pointed instrument; stab.
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a stoppage or standstill.
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something causing delay or difficulty.
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the quality of adhering or of causing things to adhere.
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something causing adhesion.
verb phrase
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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.
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stick around to wait in the vicinity; linger.
If you had stuck around, you'd have seen the fireworks.
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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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stick out to extend; protrude.
Stick out your tongue. Your shirttail is sticking out.
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stick up to rob, especially at gunpoint.
A lone gunman stuck up the gas station.
idioms
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stick it, shove.
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stick it up your / one's ass, shove.
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stick it to (someone), to take advantage of; treat unfairly.
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stick it out, to endure something patiently to the end or its completion.
It was a long, dusty trip but we stuck it out.
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stick one's neck out. neck.
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stick to one's guns. gun.
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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.
noun
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a small thin branch of a tree
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any long thin piece of wood
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such a piece of wood having a characteristic shape for a special purpose
a walking stick
a hockey stick
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a baton, wand, staff, or rod
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an object or piece shaped like a stick
a stick of celery
a stick of dynamite
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See control stick
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informal the lever used to change gear in a motor vehicle
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nautical a mast or yard
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printing See composing stick
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a group of bombs arranged to fall at intervals across a target
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a number of paratroops jumping in sequence
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slang
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verbal abuse, criticism
I got some stick for that blunder
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physical power, force (esp in the phrase give it some stick )
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(usually plural) a piece of furniture
these few sticks are all I have
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informal (plural) a rural area considered remote or backward (esp in the phrase in the sticks )
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informal (plural) the wooded interior part of the country
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(plural) hockey a declaration made by the umpire if a player's stick is above the shoulders
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(plural) goalposts
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obsolete a cannabis cigarette
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a means of coercion
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informal a dull boring person
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informal (usually preceded by old) a familiar name for a person
not a bad old stick
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in a difficult position
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a complete misunderstanding of a situation, explanation, etc
verb
verb
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(tr) to pierce or stab with or as if with something pointed
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to thrust or push (a sharp or pointed object) or (of a sharp or pointed object) to be pushed into or through another object
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(tr) to fasten in position by pushing or forcing a point into something
to stick a peg in a hole
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(tr) to fasten in position by or as if by pins, nails, etc
to stick a picture on the wall
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(tr) to transfix or impale on a pointed object
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(tr) to cover with objects piercing or set in the surface
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to put forward or be put forward; protrude or cause to protrude
to stick one's head out of the window
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informal (tr) to place or put in a specified position
stick your coat on this chair
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to fasten or be fastened by or as if by an adhesive substance
stick the pages together
they won't stick
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informal (tr) to cause to become sticky
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(when tr, usually passive) to come or cause to come to a standstill
we were stuck for hours in a traffic jam
the wheels stuck
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(intr) to remain for a long time
the memory sticks in my mind
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slang (tr) to tolerate; abide
I can't stick that man
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(intr) to be reluctant
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informal (tr; usually passive) to cause to be at a loss; baffle, puzzle, or confuse
I was totally stuck for an answer
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slang (tr) to force or impose something unpleasant on
they stuck me with the bill for lunch
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(tr) to kill by piercing or stabbing
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informal to be difficult, or against one's conscience, for one to accept, utter, or believe
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See nose
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informal (of food) to be hearty and satisfying
noun
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the state or condition of adhering
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informal a substance causing adhesion
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obsolete something that causes delay or stoppage
Usage
What does stick mean? Content warning: this article references guns. Stick is a slang term for "gun," especially an automatic rifle in Southern hip-hop in the U. S. That means you can "stick 'em up"... with a stick.
Synonym Usage
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.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stick1
First recorded before 1000; Middle English stikke, stike, Old English sticca “stick, peg, spoon”; akin to Old High German stehho, Old Norse stik “stick”; akin to stick 2
Origin of stick2
First recorded before 900; Middle English stiken, stikken, Old English stician “to pierce, thrust”; akin to German stechen “to sting,” Latin -stīg- in instīgāre “to urge, incite,” Greek stízein “to stitch, tattoo, brand”; see also stigma, stitch
Explanation
A stick is either a short length of wood—part of a tree branch—or an implement made of wood, like a hockey stick, a walking stick, or the sticks you use to play a drum. There's also the much shorter popsicle stick or lollipop stick, as well as an airplane pilot's joy stick, a stick of butter, and a long, thin piece of something, like a stick of dynamite or cinnamon. As a verb, stick means "pierce," "fix," or "stay." So you can stick a pin in a balloon, stick a sticker on a window, or stick around your classroom after math class is over.
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.
See Examples For:
Will he be taking the Hollywood sign as well, to stick atop the Grand Ole Opry or, better yet, the Alamo?
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
But if there are things that I feel passionate about and really want to stick to, I tend to push forward with them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
Burnham has said his government will stick to the party's 2024 manifesto pledges not to increase people's income tax, VAT or National Insurance contributions.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
There’s a predictable resistance of In my day we fished with a wooden stick and a bottle cap and caught fish the size of Buicks, etc.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
“But you said every time he pointed that stick at anything, bad luck was sure to come.”
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
At the other end of the ice, Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy made four saves and sticked away the puck from a danger area with the Canadiens buzzing.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 7, 2021
Coyotes winger Jordan Szwarz high sticked Schmidt to give Washington its next go-round on the power play.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 10, 2013
“The valuer man, Mr. Bambridge, must be seen, an’ bills printed out an’ sticked ’pon barn doors an’ such-like, same as when Mrs. Lezzard died,” said Phoebe.
From Children of the Mist by Eden Phillpotts
“Yes, ma’am; me an’ Biddy picked a bowkay outen a ashba’l oncet, an’ me mudder sticked it in a tumbler an’ loved it.
From A Bookful of Girls by Anna Fuller
Her kerchief on a pole sticked she, Askance, that he should it well y-see, And should remember that she was behind, And turn again, and on the strand her find.
From Chaucer by Sir Adolphus William Ward
Control over the strait, the transit route for about a fifth of the world’s oil, has become the central sticking point in negotiations to de-escalate tensions with Iran.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
He added that they would be sticking by Wrexham AFC whatever happens with the team in the future, and has put down a deposit on a season ticket.
From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026
Many people are sticking with their current job, knowing that unemployed workers have to trudge through job hunts that last for months.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026
For beginners, Papas recommends sticking to bike paths and joining cycling groups.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
Danny and Glory took turns sticking their hands into the gray rock.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
"My wife went when I was stuck in a mini camp so I didn't get my opportunity to go then," he said referring to Swift as his wife publicly for the first time.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
TUI had issued a profit warning in April, weeks after the Mideast war forced it to repatriate 10,000 travellers, including 5,000 people stuck on two cruise ships in the Gulf.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
You might breeze through or be stuck in line for a few hours, sometimes on the same trip.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
“If you don’t grow your infrastructure and your people spend their lives stuck in traffic, you know it’s a massive GDP loss.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026
Inside I found a large portion of the lasagna that had been at dinner yesterday, reheated so the cheese stuck in gooey puddles to the foil.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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.
