Phrase guide

sticks and stones

noun · phrase · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

any obsolete technology (usually of military and law enforcement purposes) when used in comparison to state of the art technology used by the antagonists or competitors.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, no-plural

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

phrase

Meaning 2

Ellipsis of sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis, idiomatic

Examples

  • 1957, Brendan Gill, The Day the Money Stopped ‘You cheap dead-beat son of a bitch.’ / ‘Sticks and stones.’
  • 1993, The Independent, 15 May He has come through the worst and now presents a stoical ‘sticks and stones’ front to his detractors.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.