Stick \Stick\, v. i.
1. To adhere; as, glue sticks to the fingers; paste sticks to
the wall.
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The green caterpillar breedeth in the inward parts
of roses not blown, where the dew sticketh. --Bacon.
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2. To remain where placed; to be fixed; to hold fast to any
position so as to be moved with difficulty; to cling; to
abide; to cleave; to be united closely.
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A friend that sticketh closer than a brother.
--Prov. xviii.
24.
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I am a kind of bur; I shall stick. --Shak.
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If on your fame our sex a bolt has thrown,
'T will ever stick through malice of your own.
--Young.
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3. To be prevented from going farther; to stop by reason of
some obstacle; to be stayed.
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I had most need of blessing, and "Amen"
Stuck in my throat. --Shak.
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The trembling weapon passed
Through nine bull hides, . . . and stuck within the
last. --Dryden.
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4. To be embarrassed or puzzled; to hesitate; to be deterred,
as by scruples; to scruple; -- often with at.
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They will stick long at part of a demonstration for
want of perceiving the connection of two ideas.
--Locke.
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Some stick not to say, that the parson and attorney
forged a will. --Arbuthnot.
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5. To cause difficulties, scruples, or hesitation.
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This is the difficulty that sticks with the most
reasonable. --Swift.
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To stick by.
(a) To adhere closely to; to be firm in supporting. "We
are your only friends; stick by us, and we will stick
by you." --Davenant.
(b) To be troublesome by adhering. "I am satisfied to
trifle away my time, rather than let it stick by me."
--Pope.
To stick out.
(a) To project; to be prominent. "His bones that were not
seen stick out." --Job xxxiii. 21.
(b) To persevere in a purpose; to hold out; as, the
garrison stuck out until relieved. [Colloq.]
To stick to, to be persevering in holding to; as, to stick
to a party or cause. "The advantage will be on our side if
we stick to its essentials." --Addison.
To stick up, to stand erect; as, his hair sticks up.
To stick up for, to assert and defend; as, to stick up for
one's rights or for a friend. [Colloq.]
To stick upon, to dwell upon; not to forsake. "If the
matter be knotty, the mind must stop and buckle to it, and
stick upon it with labor and thought." --Locke.
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Source: The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
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