sticky

sticky

adjective

Definition of STICKY

1

tending to adhere to objects upon contact <both sides of the tape are sticky, making it a little tricky to work with>

Synonyms adherent, adhesive, clingy, gluey, glutinous, gummy, tacky, tenacious, viscid

Related Words gelatinous, gooey, ropy (also ropey), syrupy, viscous; pitchy, tarry

Near Antonyms nonviscous

Antonyms nonadhesive

2

containing or characterized by an uncomfortable amount of moisture <a warm sticky day when all we wanted to do was sit somewhere with air-conditioning>

Synonyms damp, muggy, sticky, sultry

Related Words steamy, summerlike, summery, sweltering, torrid; semitropical (also semitropic), subhumid, subtropical (also subtropic), tropic, tropical; close, heavy, oppressive, smothering, stifling, stuffy, suffocating; clammy, dank, moist; awash, bathed, doused (also dowsed), drenched, dripping, saturated, soaked, soaking, sodden, soggy, sopping, soppy, soused, washed, watered, waterlogged, watery, wet

Near Antonyms bracing, cool, crisp, fresh, invigorating, refreshing; arid, baked, burned (or burnt), dehydrated, desert, droughty, dusty, parched, scorched, seared, semiarid, sere (also sear), sunbaked, thirsty, waterless

Antonyms dry

3

requiring exceptional skill or caution in performance or handling <an especially sticky conversation about money matters>

Synonyms catchy, delicate, difficult, dodgy [chiefly British], hairy, knotty, nasty, prickly, problematic (also problematical), sensitive, spiny, sticky, thorny, ticklish, touchy, tough, tricksy

Related Words abstract, abstruse, complex, complicated, hard, intricate, involved, recondite, serious; problem, scabrous, stubborn, troublesome, troublous, vexatious, vexing, worrisome; burdensome, demanding, discommoding, exacting, exhausting, importunate, inconvenient, onerous, oppressive, painful, stressful

Near Antonyms easy, effortless, manageable, painless, simple, straightforward, uncomplicated, undemanding, unproblematic

4

appealing to the emotions in an obvious and tiresome way <sticky love scenes that will bore unreconstructed cynics to death>

Synonyms chocolate-box, cloying, drippy, fruity, gooey, lovey-dovey, maudlin, mawkish, mushy, novelettish, saccharine, sappy, schmaltzy, sentimental, sloppy, slushy, soppy, soupy, spoony (or spooney), sticky, sugarcoated, sugary, wet

Related Words dreamy, misty-eyed, moonstruck, moony, nostalgic, starry-eyed; feel-good, fuzzy; melodramatic, soap-operatic, soapy, sudsy; flat, insipid, soft-boiled, tasteless, vapid, watery; cutesy, twee [chiefly British]

Near Antonyms unadulterated, unvarnished; antisentimental, cynical, hard-boiled, hard-edged, hardheaded

Antonyms unsentimental