as in conservative
a person with old-fashioned ideas
the committee is dominated by old stick-in-the-muds who have little interest in bringing new ideas to the table
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Recent Examples of stick-in-the-mud
One only has to think about the British fight against Nazism to be reminded that it was made of imperialists, constitutionalists, stick-in-the-mud aristocrats, and the socialists who first helped put Winston Churchill into power and then five years later helped push him out again.
—
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
But opposing him is Stagg, a Scottish, stick-in-the-mud academic (which is saying a lot by most weather men’s personality standards), who insists on making the team’s joint recommendation exclusively using the current observational data available to Allied forces.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 26 May 2026
Bostwick starred as the naive stick-in-the-mud and fiancé of Janice, Brad.
—Skyler Trepel, PEOPLE, 31 Oct. 2025
In the Herbert Ross film, Bacon played big-city teen Ren McCormack, who moves to the small town of Bomont, where its stick-in-the-mud local minster, the Rev. Shaw Moore (John Lithgow), has instituted a ban on dancing.
—EW.com, 9 Nov. 2023
David Corenswet plays, quite literally, a stick-in-the-mud character.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
But opposing him is Stagg, a Scottish, stick-in-the-mud academic (which is saying a lot by most weather men’s personality standards), who insists on making the team’s joint recommendation exclusively using the current observational data available to Allied forces.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 26 May 2026
Bostwick starred as the naive stick-in-the-mud and fiancé of Janice, Brad.
—Skyler Trepel, PEOPLE, 31 Oct. 2025
In the Herbert Ross film, Bacon played big-city teen Ren McCormack, who moves to the small town of Bomont, where its stick-in-the-mud local minster, the Rev. Shaw Moore (John Lithgow), has instituted a ban on dancing.
—EW.com, 9 Nov. 2023
David Corenswet plays, quite literally, a stick-in-the-mud character.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stick-in-the-mud
Noun
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Basham is a culture reporter for the conservative The Daily Wire who has been accused of promoting anti-Muslim ideas.—
Adam Harrington,
CBS News,
10 June 2026
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But the statements have become unpopular among Japanese conservatives who say Japan should stop focusing on negative history to restore national pride.—
Mari Yamaguchi,
Los Angeles Times,
10 June 2026
Noun
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In goal, the team has brought back veteran goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, who allowed just three goals in the three games in Qatar.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
12 June 2026
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Cabrera is a veteran of both the MPWW and the Minnesota carceral system, and joins Lost Kite as a multimedia editor.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
Noun
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There’s no old fogey-ness to Lorne.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
20 Apr. 2026
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For the benefit of us old fogies?—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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This ocean region is known to host numerous species of beaked whales, and fossil skulls of such whales have been discovered nearby, snagged by trawlers or long-line fishing vessels in deep-sea regions off Iberia, South Africa and the Kerguelen Islands.—
Mindy Weisberger,
CNN Money,
12 June 2026
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It was blended with conventional fossil kerosene by MB Energy before being successfully pumped into the aircraft at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
11 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stick-in-the-mud.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stick-in-the-mud. Accessed 16 Jun. 2026.
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