shtick

noun

variants or less commonly schtick or shtik
1
: a usually comic or repetitious performance or routine : bit
2
: one's special trait, interest, or activity : bag
he's alive and well and now doing his shtick out in HollywoodRobert Daley
shticky adjective

Examples of shtick in a Sentence

That joke is part of his shtick. Sports are just not my shtick.
Recent Examples on the Web Annihilation’s best bit of shtick involves the overuse of acronyms. Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 24 Oct. 2024 Wilson’s directorial vision, super sharp when not focused on her own shtick, is ably aided by Ross Emery’s bright cinematography, Sam Hobbs’ perfect production design and Margot Wilson’s ace costume designs. Pete Hammond, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2024 With all due respect, Roundhouse veered away from the shtick of All That, perhaps to its detriment. Eliot Glazer, Vulture, 12 Mar. 2024 The fatal flaw is that there’s no emotion holding the bits of shtick together. Karen D'souza, The Mercury News, 25 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for shtick 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'shtick.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Yiddish shtik pranks, literally, piece, from Middle High German stücke, from Old High German stucki; akin to Old English stycce piece, Old High German stoc stick — more at stock entry 1

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of shtick was in 1959

Dictionary Entries Near shtick

Cite this Entry

“Shtick.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shtick. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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