1
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Phrase(s): stick up
to stand upright or on end; to thrust upward. • The ugly red flower stuck up from the bouquet. • Why is the worst-looking flower sticking up above all the rest?, Phrase(s): stick someone or something up
to rob someone or a business establishment. (Presumably with the aid of a gun.) • Max tried to stick the drugstore up. • Max stuck up the store., Phrase(s): stick something up
1. to fasten something to a place where it can be seen; to put something on display, especially by gluing, tacking, or stapling. • Stick this notice up. Put a copy on every bulletin board. • Please stick up this notice. 2. to raise something; to hold something up. • She stuck her hand up because she knew the answer. • The elephant stuck up its trunk and trumpeted.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs
2
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Project from a surface, as in That little cowlick of his sticks up no matter what you do. [Early 1400s] 1. Put up a poster or notice, as in Will you stick up this announcement on the bulletin board? [Late 1700s] 3. Rob, especially at gunpoint, as in The gang concentrated on sticking up liquor stores and gas stations. This usage, dating from the mid-1800s, gave rise to the colloquial phrase, stick ‘em up, a robber's order to a victim to raise his or her hands above the head. [1930s] 2.
American Heritage Idioms