STICKS Synonyms: 189 Similar and Opposite Words

sticks 1 of 2

plural noun

ˈstik

as in countryside

the open rural area outside of big towns and cities grew up in the sticks and is used to traveling miles just to get a loaf of bread

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sticks

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of stick

as in adheres

to hold to something firmly as if by adhesion those magnets are strong enough to stick to the refrigerator without any problems

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as in puts

to arrange something in a certain spot or position you can stick that box in the corner until I figure out where to put everything

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as in stabs

to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object could hardly feel the needle when the nurse stuck my arm with it

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as in plucks

to rob by the use of trickery or threats she got stuck by an unscrupulous seller while using the online auction site

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of sticks

Verb

The standout episode—the conversion history of Kendra, a Black striver married to the Schwoopers’ daughter, Shira—sticks its landing, enabling the viewer to see faith as a refuge, not a cage. — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 9 July 2026 Otherwise, Kail sticks closely to the template established for him, recreating every scene and sequence from the first movie with ruthless fidelity and adding essentially no departures of any significance. — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 8 July 2026 The late Bill Carr, a former Florida athletic director who was Houston’s AD when the SWC breakup began, once summed this up to me in a way that still sticks. — Sam Khan Jr, New York Times, 1 July 2026 No sooner does Aemond arrive than the silver-white-haired warrior sticks his blade into the smooth-talking Harrenhal caretaker, Ser Simon Strong, played by British thespian Simon Russell Beale. — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 29 June 2026 Director David Anspaugh, whose resume includes small-town basketball tale Hoosiers and against-all-odds college football biopic Rudy, sticks rigidly to his sporting underdog formula, only skimming the surface of the David-versus-Goliath encounter. — Jon O'Brien, Vulture, 26 June 2026 The catch is knowing which systems hold up, which ones look most like a real manicure and how to prep your natural nails so the glue actually sticks. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 26 June 2026 When the nonstick coating wears out, food sticks more, and cleaning up gets harder. — Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 26 June 2026 Your practical eye spots tiny gaps, while a kind tone keeps people open to change so the fix actually sticks today. — Pubsubhub User, Baltimore Sun, 4 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sticks

Verb

Roll each dough ball in powdered sugar, rolling between your palms so that sugar adheres.

— Erin Merhar, Southern Living, 17 July 2026
This helps ensure the new grout adheres properly.

— Jamie Cuccinelli, Martha Stewart, 10 June 2026

Definition of adheres

Verb

Advocates and city councilors said at an April Council hearing that the Wu administration’s inaction has cost the city millions in federal grant funding and puts cyclists and pedestrians at risk.

— Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald, 22 July 2026
That puts additional weight on the value of the face-to-face interview — one of the last remaining stages of the hiring process that can’t be automated.

— Cami Fateh, Vogue, 22 July 2026

Definition of puts

Verb

In the first five minutes, her Judith stabs a man at a party, escapes on skis and celebrates a job well done by bedding a besotted hottie.

— Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 July 2026
Kara talks her out of it, and when Ruthye walks away, Kara turns back to Krem and stabs him multiple times with a sword.

— Brian Truitt, USA Today, 27 June 2026

Definition of stabs

Verb

His torso and thighs grow eye-poppingly muscular beneath their skimpy fur-and-leather togs—a development that does not go unnoticed by a warrior named Red Hair, who plucks the young hunk from his post and tosses him into the prime time of the gladiator pit.

— Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
But the emotional gravity of this offering's deeply personal, melancholic lyrical content plucks an undeniably profound chord that uniquely separates it from the rest of his work.

— Chris Barilla, PEOPLE, 29 May 2026

Definition of plucks

Verb

And Anne Hathaway, in a bravura performance, situates Penelope on an emotional precipice, caught between indecision and indignation, between yearning for her husband and a palpable disgust with the alternatives.

— Justin Chang, New Yorker, 17 July 2026
Celebrated artists such as Oscar Murillo, Selma Selman, and Hew Locke will be among the participants in next year’s edition of the show, which situates commissions around Münster.

— Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 30 June 2026

Definition of situates

Verb

In a nod to the owners trying to get MLB to look more like the NBA or the NFL, the MLBPA proposed the possibility of trading draft picks in the first ten rounds, something that is not currently allowed.

— Dan Freedman, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Suzanne picks Billy, Will, and Kurt to ride horses with her while the rest picnic with Amy.

— Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 21 July 2026

Definition of picks

Verb

Ghiggia gallops in from the right and squeezes a finish in at the near post to win the cup for Uruguay in the Maracana.

— Adam Hurrey, New York Times, 17 July 2026
As a result, food inflation squeezes the amount of money people have left over to buy things like Levi's jeans and plane tickets, which brings us to our next earnings preview.

— Zev Fima,Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 5 July 2026