stick

Stick

'Stick' is a frequently used word. It can be a noun and a verb and is used in a lot of expressions.

As a noun 'stick' usually refers to a long thin piece of wood or other material.

If I am camping in the countryside where there are a lot of trees, I might collect some sticks to make a fire.

People who have difficulty walking might buy a walking stick to help them.

In a car with manual gears, you have to use a gear stick.

A nice expression is 'to get the wrong end of the stick'. It means you completely misunderstand a situation. For example: I'm sorry, I got the the wrong end of the stick and mistakenly thought she was complaining. 

As a verb 'stick' means has different meanings

To stop a bus in Britain sometimes you have to stick your hand out so the driver knows you want him/her to stop. A child might stick his tongue out at another child. Here the meaning is 'to put out'.

'Stick' is also used with the meaning of not being able to move.

For example:

• The car was stuck in the snow
• You need to stick some stamps on the letter

If you have a computer or maths problem that you cannot solve, you can say you are stuck
eg I'm stuck, can you help me?

If  you have honey on your fingers, your fingers will be sticky. 

Some interesting expressions are:

'stick up for someone' eg When my friend Peter was criticised unfairly I stuck up for him and said it wasn't his fault.

'stick one's neck out' eg The economist stuck his neck out and predicted that the price of oil would reach $200 per barrel before Christmas.
In this sentence the economist is not being cautious and is making a prediction that other economists are likely to disagree with.