stick

Less common meanings

16. 16
    verbdatedtransitive

    To stop someone short, block their progress, or leave them baffled.

    Questions about the old tax law could stick even the most experienced clerks.

    One unfamiliar word in the old letter stuck the translator for most of an afternoon.

    UsageToday stump is the usual word for this, and stick someone with something usually means leaving them a burden.

    Similarstump, thwart

    Note

    An older way of saying stump or thwart: a hard question could stick even an expert. The active use is now dated, but the passive lives on in everyday talk, as when a student is stuck on a hard problem. Source

    Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

    • Stick has an older transitive sense meaning to stump, thwart, or puzzle someone. en.wiktionary.org
17. 17
    manual gearsnouncolloquialUScountable or uncountable

    A manual transmission, or a vehicle fitted with one, operated by a hand-controlled gear shift rather than shifting automatically.

    Plenty of rental agencies abroad still offer stick, so it helps to know how to shift.

    He prefers driving stick on mountain roads for the extra control it gives on steep grades.

    UsageBoth drive a stick and drive stick mean to drive a vehicle with a manual transmission.

    Similarstickshift

    Oppositeautomatic

    Note

    Named for the lever, not the gearbox: the gear shift's resemblance to a twig gave the name. Stick shift is the fuller form. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact

    • The vehicle/transmission sense derives from the gear lever's resemblance to a stick or twig. en.wiktionary.org
18. 18
    canenouncountable or uncountable

    A cane or walking aid, usually of wood, metal, or plastic, used as support when walking.

    After the surgery, he relied on a stick to get around the house.

    The nurse handed the old woman her stick so she could stand up.

    UsagePeople walk with a stick and lean on it.

    Similarcane

19. 19
    chewing gumnouncountable or uncountable

    A single strip of chewing gum, cut to the usual rectangular shape and size.

    A pack of gum usually holds several sticks wrapped in foil.

    He folded a stick of gum into his mouth before the interview.

    UsageCounted as a stick of gum, or a piece of gum.

    Similarpiece, strip

20. 20
    butter blocknounCanadaUScountable or uncountable

    A small rectangular block of butter, margarine, or lard equal to one half of a cup.

    Cream two sticks of butter with the sugar until fluffy.

    The recipe called for half a stick of margarine.

    UsageCounted in recipes: a stick of butter, half a stick, two sticks.

    Note

    A measure as much as a shape. In Canadian and US recipes, "two sticks of butter" is a quantity, one cup in all, and "half a stick" is a quarter cup. Margarine and lard are counted the same way. Anyone following such a recipe needs only the conversion: a stick is half a cup, or eight tablespoons. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 4 facts

    • In Canadian and US recipes, two sticks of butter equal one cup. kitchenaid.ca
    • Half a stick of butter equals a quarter cup. landolakes.com
    • The half-cup sense of stick also applies to margarine and lard. en.wiktionary.org
    • One stick equals half a cup or eight tablespoons. kitchenaid.ca
21. 21
    punishmentnounfigurativelycountable or uncountable

    A negative stimulus or a punishment used to drive someone toward a desired action.

    Like the punishment half of 'carrot and stick': the threat that pushes you, rather than the reward that lures you.

    Without a credible stick, the threat of sanctions meant nothing to the regime.

    The policy offered no reward, only the stick of higher fines.

    UsageOften paired with a reward: the carrot and the stick, carrot or stick.

    Similarthreat, penalty, punishment, deterrent, sanction

    Oppositecarrot, reward, incentive

    Note

    Half of a pairing: the stick is the threat, and the carrot is the reward that tempts first. Behind the figure is a beast of burden poked or beaten forward with a rod. Paul Krugman, in 2023, describes climate proposals made "mainly of sticks", and a court's contempt power can be called a stick. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

    • The carrot-and-stick pairing represents reward and threatened punishment. en.wikipedia.org
    • The metaphor involves driving a beast of burden forward by beating it with a stick. en.wikipedia.org
    • In 2023, Paul Krugman described climate policy proposals as consisting mainly of sticks. en.wiktionary.org
    • A court's contempt power can be described as a stick. supremecourt.ohio.gov
22. 22
    flash drivenouncountable or uncountable

    A small, portable device used to store and transfer digital data; a memory stick.

    He backed up the presentation onto a stick before the meeting.

    The teacher handed out lecture notes on a stick to each student.

    UsageYou save files to or on a stick, as with any storage device.

    Similardrive

    Note

    A clipping of memory stick, and in computing talk the short form is enough on its own. In a conversation about games, context keeps it apart from the game controller.

23. 23
    land perfectlyverbtransitive

    To perform a landing or shot perfectly, finishing with full control and no error.

    The gymnast knew she had to stick her dismount to win the gold.

    The skateboarder stuck the landing on his very first try, and his friends cheered.

    UsageThe object is usually the finish: stick the landing, stick the dismount.

    Similarnail, ace, land

    Oppositebotch, fluff, flub

    Note

    A coaching and judging verb whose object is usually the finish: stick the landing, stick the dismount, or, in other sports, stick a shot. Gymnastics gives the clearest picture, where a world champion sticks the dismount and ends with full control. Aviation uses the same phrase for a landing done exactly right. Source

    Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 1 fact

    • The object can name the whole skill, such as a vault: the Air Force Academy quotes a gymnast saying “stick a vault.” goairforcefalcons.com
24. 24
    verbintransitive

    Of snow, to remain frozen on the ground after falling rather than melting away.

    Forecasters doubt the snow will stick on the warm roads.

    By dawn the snow had begun to stick to the fields.

    Similarsettle, pitch

    Oppositemelt, thaw

25. 25
    push onto spikeverbtransitive

    To fix something onto a sharp or pointed instrument; to impale.

    The cook stuck the chunks of lamb onto metal skewers.

    Collectors stick each specimen on a fine pin for display.

    UsageUsually with on or onto: stick the meat onto a skewer.

    Similarimpale, fix, transfix, stake, pierce

26. 26
    cigarettenounslangcountable or uncountable

    A cigarette, usually of tobacco and less often of marijuana.

    UsageAlso a counting word: a tax of one dollar per stick.

    Similarjoint, reefer

    Note

    Usually the cigarette is tobacco. When it is marijuana, the word sits beside joint and reefer.

27. 27
    pool cuenounslangUSuncountable

    The tapered cue used to strike the ball in pool, billiards, or snooker.

    The hustler kept his own stick in a leather case.

    Line up the shot and keep your stick level.

    Similarcue

28. 28
    verbdatedtransitive

    To take advantage of someone, to make them pay, or sometimes to cheat them.

    The garage stuck him for two hundred dollars on a job that took ten minutes.

    Behind all that languid talk she was feverishly computing, "I wonder how much I can stick him for it. A hundred and fifty? But it's worth that - two hundred. He won't value it unless the price is stiff."

    1950, Norman Lindsay, Dust or Polish?

    UsageUsually stick someone for an amount: they stuck me for twenty dollars.

    Similarsting, overcharge

    Note

    The tone is cynical, the talk of a seller sizing up a buyer, as in Norman Lindsay's Dust or Polish? (1950): "I wonder how much I can stick him for it." Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • Norman Lindsay wrote Dust or Polish?. en.wikipedia.org
    • Dust or Polish? was first published in 1950. swinburne.edu.au
    • The quoted wording appears in the novel; the surrounding narration presents it as a female character's thought. en.wiktionary.org
29. 29
    criticismnounBritishuncountable

    Criticism or ridicule, especially the sharp or sustained mockery a person is made to endure.

    The minister came in for serious stick over the leaked memo.

    He gave his teammate plenty of stick about the missed penalty.

    UsageYou get stick, take stick or give someone stick, often a lot of stick.

    Similarflak, criticism, ridicule, mockery, grief

    Oppositepraise, acclaim

    Note

    A Huddersfield Daily Examiner writer in 2008 got stick for turning up to training in walking boots. It probably comes from the wooden stick once used for beatings. Source

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • The Huddersfield Daily Examiner example was published in 2008, under Chris Roberts's name. en.wiktionary.org
    • The writer reported getting stick for arriving at training in walking boots. en.wiktionary.org
    • The ridicule sense probably derives from literal beating with a stick. en.wiktionary.org
30. 30
    verbUKintransitive

    In blackjack, to stop taking cards and keep one's hand as it is.

    Most players stick on eighteen rather than risk going bust.

    She stuck at twenty and watched the dealer turn over a king and a queen.

    UsageOften stick on or at a total: stick on eighteen. Taking another card is twisting.

    Similarstand

    Oppositehit, twist

    Note

    Chiefly British card-table talk. Elsewhere a blackjack player who stops drawing usually says they stand, and the related idiom stand pat carries the same idea beyond cards: keeping what one has rather than risking a change.

31. 31
    nounfigurativelycountable or uncountable

    A single item of furniture, particularly a wooden one.

    The fire destroyed every stick of furniture in the house.

    After the divorce he was left with a mattress and a few battered sticks of furniture.

    UsageAlmost always in stick of furniture, often in not a stick of furniture or every stick.

    Similarpiece, item

    Note

    Almost always it comes in the phrase stick of furniture, and it belongs to talk of poverty and loss: not one stick of furniture, a fire that took every stick. Thackeray, in The Adventures of Philip, sums up poor Philip's goods as his savings and his little sticks of furniture. The use grows out of the plain piece of wood, so it fits a wooden chair better than a sofa. Source

    Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Thackeray's The Adventures of Philip describes Philip's possessions using the words 'his savings and his little sticks of furniture'. en.wiktionary.org
    • The furniture sense alludes to a stick as a piece of wood. en.wiktionary.org
32. 32
    verb

    To strike a person, an animal, or a thing with a stick.
33. 33
    noun

    In golf, the pole carrying a small flag that shows players where the hole is; the flagstick.
34. 34
    nounslang

    Vigor, spirit, or energy; force and intensity of effort.
35. 35
    noun

    A board ridden in board sports: a surfboard, snowboard, or skateboard.
36. 36
    nounUS

    A piece of sawn construction lumber, such as a common two-by-four stud.
37. 37
    noun

    In cope-and-stick joinery, the upright frame piece whose molded edge takes the shaped end of the crosspiece.
38. 38
    noun

    One of a ship's masts, or a piece of one, or a spar hung across it.
39. 39
    noun

    A cluster of something fixed to or wound around a stick, such as candy or meat.
40. 40
    nounarchaic

    A scroll fixed to a rod so that it can be wound around it.
41. 41
    noun

    The release rack holding a bomber's bombs, or a string of bombs dropped one after another from it, or any similar rapid series of drops such as paratroopers.
42. 42
    noun

    The pilot's handling of an aircraft by means of its control column.
43. 43
    nounslangUS

    The propeller of an airplane.
44. 44
    nounslang

    A pistol, revolver or other handgun.
45. 45
    noundated

    A hand-held tray, usually metal, in which a typesetter lines up pieces of type to form lines of text.
46. 46
    nounslang

    The clarinet, as jazz musicians called it.
47. 47
    noun

    The crop a jockey uses to urge a horse on during a race.
48. 48
    nounslangUS

    Pool as a game, or a single game of it.
49. 49
    noun

    How far a particular golf club can hit the ball off the tee.
50. 50
    noun

    How much hitting power a particular bat can deliver.
51. 51
    noun

    A batter's overall skill at hitting the ball.
52. 52
    noun

    How accurately shots can be made with a particular hockey stick, reflecting also the skill of the player.
53. 53
    noundated

    A person, often described with a word such as old or dull, or a group of people.

    Your father's a great old stick. He's really been very good to me.

    1967, Maurice Shadbolt, The Presence of Music: Three Novellas
54. 54
    noundated

    A very thin person, especially a woman with a flat chest.

    "She's a stick, this one. She lacks your—" he patted her left breast— "equipment."

    1967, Cecelia Holland, Rakóssy
55. 55
    noundated

    A helper hidden among the audience who pretends to be a random spectator.

    The kid was a stick, a plant, a student from UNLV who picked up a few bucks nightly by saying the words "seven of hearts."

    2001, Paul Quarrington, The Spirit Cabinet
56. 56
    noundated

    A person employed by a casino or gambling house who plays to draw others into the game.

    A shill is also called a stick, and the role of the shill or stick is to make the customer relax and feel at ease.

    2011, Howard Fast, Helen
57. 57
    noundated

    A rigid, foolishly stubborn person.
58. 58
    noundated

    A pilot who flies fighter planes.

    Bill Kirk, described by Robin as a "hell of a stick," didn't even attend college until after the Vietnam War.

    2001, John Darrell Sherwood, Fast Movers: America's Jet Pilots and the Vietnam Experience
59. 59
    noundatedSouth Africa

    A small unit of infantry, such as a group of paratroopers jumping together.
60. 60
    nounslang

    Physical punishment such as beatings, or by extension harsh criticism.
61. 61
    nounslang

    Hard, fast driving with the accelerator pressed down.
62. 62
    nounobsolete

    A former British measure equal to two inches.
63. 63
    nounarchaic

    A traditional counting unit for eels, usually twenty-five fish.

    The stick is employed for eels, and contained twenty-five.

    1866, James Edwin Thorold Rogers, A History of Agriculture and Prices in England
64. 64
    noun

    In ASCII, one of the eight blocks of sixteen characters into which its 128 codes are divided.
65. 65
    verb

    To shape the edge of a wooden frame piece so the coped ends of crosspieces fit against it.
66. 66
    verbdated

    To set type by hand, lining up the letters in a composing stick.
67. 67
    verb

    To provide something with sticks or set sticks in or around it, especially to support climbing plants such as peas.
68. 68
    noun

    The quality of staying stuck or tending to cling.
69. 69
    noun

    How well tires grip the road.
70. 70
    noun

    Something that clings to a surface.
71. 71
    noun

    In fly fishing, how much line is lying flat on the surface at the moment the angler starts a cast.
72. 72
    noun

    A jab or stab with something sharp.
73. 73
    verbdated

    To be unwilling or slow to do something, often in phrases saying someone would not hold back.

    For thou art so possess’d with murderous hate That ’gainst thyself thou stick’st not to conspire.

    1609, William Shakespeare, “Sonnet 10”
74. 74
    verbdated

    To find something hard to understand or be baffled by it.
75. 75
    verbdated

    To cause someone to hesitate, doubt, or hold back.
76. 76
    verb

    To pierce a person or animal with a knife or other pointed weapon.
77. 77
    verbarchaic

    To decorate something by pinning or pushing items into it.

    my shroud of white, stuck all with yew

    c. 1601, William Shakespeare, “Twelfe Night, or What You Will”
78. 78
    verb

    To start new plants from pieces snipped off a parent plant.
79. 79
    verb

    To cut moldings with a machine rather than shape them by hand.
80. 80
    verbslangUS

    To have sex with someone.
81. 81
    adjectivecolloquial

    Tending to cling or adhere.
82. 82
    nounobsolete

    A customary measure of length for imported Flemish cloth, which differed by material.