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stick-in-the-mud

stick-in-the-mud

1 8.3
A person who does not like new things or change
  • idiom
  • /ˈstɪk ɪn ðə mʌd/
  • Offensive
translation icon : carca
  • Just the same old stick-in-the-mud you've always known me to be. Damn Walter, he was always looking for some big story, some action.
  • an old stick-in-the-mud

Examples

  • These stick in the mud Conservative rabbis and congregations who want to keep doing things the old fashioned way.

  • And, and this picture of him of as, as being a stick in the mud and not wanting to accept quantum theory is false.

  • I'm thrilled to be married to such a predictable stick-in-the-mud.

    Fiction book (1999)
  • Once again we're wrongly presumed to be backward-thinking, creativity-crushing sticks in the mud.

    Blog text (5)
  • Don't be such a stick-in-the-mud; try something new for a change.

  • My uncle is a real stick-in-the-mud, always refusing to embrace modern technology.

  • She called him a stick-in-the-mud because he never wanted to go out and have fun.

Synonyms

stick in the mud
vsstick-in-the-mud
  • Offensive
6 8.1

A person who does not like change or try new things

is old-fashioned and resists social or practical changes
fogey
vsstick-in-the-mud
  • Offensive
4 9.9

A person with old-fashioned ideas who refuses to change

is more about stubbornly keeping familiar habits than mere appearance
old fogey
vsstick-in-the-mud
  • Offensive
2 8.2

A person who prefers old ways and does not like change

is more about fixed personal routines than broad conservative beliefs
old stick
vsstick-in-the-mud
  • Offensive
1 9.6

A person who prefers the usual way of doing things and does not accept new ideas

is similar but focuses on being set in personal ways
stiffneck
vsstick-in-the-mud
  • Offensive
9.3

A person who refuses to change their mind or actions

is about being old-fashioned and avoiding new ideas from habit

Antonyms

80 3.7

Ready to listen to new ideas and accept different views

65 3.6

Willing to try new and sometimes risky things

How Open-minded

conservative
306 4.4
stick-in-the-mud
  • Offensive
1 8.3
reactionary
8 8.6

Surface Forms

Etymology

Stick-in-the-mud comes from the image of a stick 'stuck' in mud, unable to move. So a 'stick-in-the-mud' is a person who stays the same and refuses to try new things.