the sticks

the sticks — idiom

1. a casual expression for any remote countryside location that lies a great distan

1.idiomB2
Definition

a casual expression for any remote countryside location that lies a great distance from urban centres — the term is often used humorously to suggest a place is dull, inconvenient, or underdeveloped

Example

After twenty years in Kaohsiung, Eri's parents sold their apartment and moved to the sticks.

fixed expression: 'the sticks' (always with 'the')

Jabari told his colleagues he grew up in the sticks, about two hours from the nearest hospital.

implies inconvenience and isolation

Common collocations
  • out in the sticks
  • live in the sticks
  • move to the sticks
  • grow up in the sticks
  • somewhere out in the sticks
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • the city

    the urban centre that 'the sticks' is contrasted with

  • the big city

    emphasises urban life and convenience

Grammar Patterns

the sticks

Usage Note

Always used with the definite article 'the' — never 'in sticks' or 'in the stick'. This is an informal, often humorous or mildly negative way to refer to the countryside, implying it is inconveniently far from modern amenities. Common in the fixed phrase 'out in the sticks'.

Common Mistakes

I live in sticks.
I live in the sticks.
the definite article 'the' is always required and never dropped.
They moved to the stick.
They moved to the sticks.
'sticks' is always plural in this idiom.

Synonym discussion

Sense: idiom/1

All four phrases describe remote locations, but they differ in scope and tone. 'The sticks' (from 'the sticks and stones' of the forest) is mildly humorous or self-deprecating — city-dwellers use it to tease the countryside, and country-dwellers use it to joke about their own situation. 'The middle of nowhere' is more neutral and can describe any isolated spot, including a desert or a mountaintop, not just farmland. 'The boonies' (military slang from 'boondocks,' a Tagalog word for mountain) is very informal and American; it carries a stronger sense of being uncivilised or backward. 'The backwoods' specifically suggests a wooded, hard-to-reach area and often implies a lack of modern education or sophistication. For everyday conversation about rural living, 'the sticks' is common across both British and American English.

the sticks ↗the middle of nowhere ↗the boonies ↗the backwoods ↗

Etymology

English

The phrase 'the sticks' is short for 'the sticks and stones' of the forest, used figuratively from the early 1900s to mean a remote wooded area. The idea is that such a place has no buildings or pavements — only trees and rough ground. By the mid-20th century it had become a common informal term for the countryside far from any town.