stick1

[stik] /stɪk/
noun
1.
a branch or shoot of a tree or shrub that has been cut or broken off.
2.
a relatively long and slender piece of wood.
3.
a long piece of wood for use as fuel, in carpentry, etc.
4.
a rod or wand.
5.
a baton.
6.
Chiefly British. a walking stick or cane.
7.
a club or cudgel.
8.
something that serves to goad or coerce:
The threat of unemployment was the stick that kept the workers toiling overtime.
Compare carrot (def 3).
9.
a long, slender piece or part of anything:
a stick of candy; sticks of celery.
10.
any of four equal parts in a pound of butter or margarine.
11.
Sports. an implement used to drive or propel a ball or puck, as a crosse or a hockey stick.
12.
Aeronautics. a lever, usually with a handle, by which the longitudinal and lateral motions of an airplane are controlled.
13.
Nautical. a mast or spar.
14.
Printing. composing stick.
15.
the sticks, Informal. 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.
16.
Military.
  1. a group of bombs so arranged as to be released in a row across a target.
  2. the bomb load.
17.
Informal. stick shift.
18.
Slang. a marijuana cigarette.
19.
Informal. an unenthusiastic or uninteresting person.
20.
Informal. a portion of liquor, as brandy, added to a nonalcoholic drink.
verb (used with object), sticked, sticking.
21.
to furnish (a plant, vine, etc.) with a stick or sticks in order to prop or support.
22.
Printing. to set (type) in a composing stick.
Idioms
23.
short / dirty end of the stick, Slang. the least desirable assignment, decision, or part of an arrangement.
Origin
before 1000; Middle English stikke, Old English sticca; akin to Old High German stehho, Old Norse stik stick; akin to stick2
Related forms
stickless, adjective
sticklike, adjective
British Dictionary definitions for short end of the stick

stick1

/stɪk/
noun
1.
a small thin branch of a tree
2.
  1. any long thin piece of wood
  2. such a piece of wood having a characteristic shape for a special purpose: a walking stick, a hockey stick
  3. a baton, wand, staff, or rod
3.
an object or piece shaped like a stick: a 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
8.
  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, criticism: I got some stick for that blunder
  2. physical power, force (esp in the phrase give it some stick)
10.
(usually pl) a piece of furniture: these few sticks are all I have
11.
(pl) (informal) a rural area considered remote or backward (esp in the phrase in the sticks)
12.
(pl) (Canadian W coast & Northwestern Canadian, informal) the wooded interior part of the country
13.
(pl) (hockey) a declaration made by the umpire if a player's stick is above the shoulders
14.
(pl) 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 person: not 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
verb sticks, sticking, sticked
21.
to support (a plant) with sticks; stake
Word Origin
Old English sticca; related to Old Norse stikka, Old High German stecca

stick2

/stɪk/
verb sticks, sticking, stuck
1.
(transitive) 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.
(transitive) to fasten in position by pushing or forcing a point into something: to stick a peg in a hole
4.
(transitive) to fasten in position by or as if by pins, nails, etc: to stick a picture on the wall
5.
(transitive) to transfix or impale on a pointed object
6.
(transitive) 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 protrude: to stick one's head out of the window
8.
(transitive) (informal) to place or put in a specified position: stick your coat on this chair
9.
to fasten or be fastened by or as if by an adhesive substance: stick the pages together, they won't stick
10.
(transitive) (informal) to cause to become sticky
11.
(when transitive, usually passive) to come or cause to come to a standstill: we were stuck for hours in a traffic jam, the wheels stuck
12.
(intransitive) to remain for a long time: the memory sticks in my mind
13.
(transitive) (slang, mainly Brit) to tolerate; abide: I can't stick that man
14.
(intransitive) to be reluctant
15.
(transitive; usually passive) (informal) to cause to be at a loss; baffle, puzzle, or confuse: I was totally stuck for an answer
16.
(transitive) (slang) to force or impose something unpleasant on: they stuck me with the bill for lunch
17.
(transitive) to kill by piercing or stabbing
18.
(informal) stick in one's throat, stick in one's craw, to be difficult, or against one's conscience, for one to accept, utter, or believe
19.
stick one's nose into, See nose (sense 17)
20.
(informal) stick to the ribs, (of food) to be hearty and satisfying
noun
21.
the state or condition of adhering
22.
(informal) a substance causing adhesion
23.
(obsolete) something that causes delay or stoppage
See also stick around, stick at, stick by, stick down, stick out, stick to, stick together, stick-up, stick with, stuck
Word Origin
Old English stician; related to Old High German stehhan to sting, Old Norse steikja to roast on a spit
Word Origin and History for short end of the stick

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.

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.

Slang definitions & phrases for short end of the stick

short end of the stick

Related Terms

get the shitty end of the stick


stick

noun
  1. A baseball bat (1868+ Baseball)
  2. A baton or rod of office, now esp a conductor's baton (1688+)
  3. A golf club: The golf dudes had their bag of sticks (1857+)
  4. A billiard cue: I lived off the stick three months (1674+)
  5. The mast of a ship or boat: The gale blew the sticks right out of her (1802+)
  6. A control lever or handle; joy-stick (1914+)
  7. (also stick shift) A manual gearshift lever, esp one mounted on the floor (1971+)
  8. A slide rule; slipstick (1920s+)
  9. A ski pole (1961+)
  10. A clarinet; licorice stick (1920+ Jazz musicians)
  11. A marijuana cigarette; joint, stick of gage, stick of tea: Marijuana was easy to get, 25 cents a ''stick'' (1938+ Narcotics)
  12. A tall, thin person; beanpole (1940s+)
  13. A stiff, awkward person; an overformal person (1800+)
  14. A dull person; stick in the mud (1733+)
  15. A casino croupier (1940s+ Gambling)
  16. An assistant who poses as an ordinary innocent person; shill: The man who won the $246 was a shill, sometimes referred to as a ''stick''/ One operator, known as a ''stall'' or ''stick,'' distracts or frames the sucker in some way (1926+ Carnival & underworld)
verb

To cheat; swindle; esp, to overcharge; shaft: runs the Bowie garage, routinely sticking what customers come his way (1699+)

Related Terms

boom sticks, carry the stick, dipshit, dope stick, fire stick, get on the stick, gob-stick, have a broom up one's ass, jive stick, kick stick, know what one can do with something, make something stick, shitstick, swizzle-stick, tea-stick, tell someone what to do with something


Idioms and Phrases with short end of the stick

stick

also see:
stuck
.