shtick
noun
ˈshtik 
variants or less commonly schtick or shtik
1
: a usually comic or repetitious performance or routine : bit
2
: one's special trait, interest, or activity : bag
he's alive and well and now doing his shtick out in Hollywood
Robert Daley
Robert Daley shticky
ˈshti-kē
adjective 
Synonyms
- act
- bit
- number
- routine
- turn
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
That joke is part of his shtick. Sports are just not my shtick.
Recent Examples on the Web This kind of shtick is readily identifiable to anyone who sat in the bleachers in gym class with a doctor’s note. Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2022 But a bigger reason for caution is that, whether or not Mr. Jones remains personally enriched by his lies, his shtick is everywhere these days. Kevin Roose, New York Times, 6 Aug. 2022 On another night, without the kids, the whole shtick was slightly less charming. Hannah Goldfield, The New Yorker, 29 July 2022 If the accompanying music were formulaic, trend-chasing fluff, this shtick would be intolerable. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 18 Mar. 2022 The whole shtick may sound suspiciously Springsteenian; Antonoff’s tactic has been to lean into that. Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 16 May 2022 Packing their shtick into a speedy 87 minutes, returning director Kyle Balda delivers a perfectly painless romp that should enthrall kids, entertain adults and keep Minion cosplayers employed for many a birthday party to come. Thomas Floyd, Washington Post, 28 June 2022 The shtick may have crossed the line, and now it's gotten him into a situation that he is not really equipped for. Mma Junkie, USA TODAY, 23 Mar. 2022 And then Colin Trevorrow [director and co-screenwriter of the ‘Jurassic World’ trilogy] kind of gave him mouth to mouth, and brought him into this world in which his whole shtick really mattered and really affected other things. Angelique Jackson, Variety, 10 June 2022 See More
Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2022 But a bigger reason for caution is that, whether or not Mr. Jones remains personally enriched by his lies, his shtick is everywhere these days. Kevin Roose, New York Times, 6 Aug. 2022 On another night, without the kids, the whole shtick was slightly less charming. Hannah Goldfield, The New Yorker, 29 July 2022 If the accompanying music were formulaic, trend-chasing fluff, this shtick would be intolerable. Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 18 Mar. 2022 The whole shtick may sound suspiciously Springsteenian; Antonoff’s tactic has been to lean into that. Andrew Marantz, The New Yorker, 16 May 2022 Packing their shtick into a speedy 87 minutes, returning director Kyle Balda delivers a perfectly painless romp that should enthrall kids, entertain adults and keep Minion cosplayers employed for many a birthday party to come. Thomas Floyd, Washington Post, 28 June 2022 The shtick may have crossed the line, and now it's gotten him into a situation that he is not really equipped for. Mma Junkie, USA TODAY, 23 Mar. 2022 And then Colin Trevorrow [director and co-screenwriter of the ‘Jurassic World’ trilogy] kind of gave him mouth to mouth, and brought him into this world in which his whole shtick really mattered and really affected other things. Angelique Jackson, Variety, 10 June 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
Yiddish shtik pranks, literally, piece, from Middle High German stücke, from Old High German stucki; akin to Old English stycce piece, Old High German stoc stick — more at stock entry 1
First Known Use
1959, in the meaning defined at sense 1
shtick
noun
variants also schtick or shtik
as in act
a performance regularly presented by an individual or group his shtick as a falling-down drunk isn't funny to people battling alcoholism Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- act
- routine
- turn
- bit
- signature
- number