more than one can shake a stick at

alternative more than one can poke a stick at · alternative more than you can shake a stick at

1. comparative onlyOccurring in abundance; of a large quantity; many.

   Q: I wonder how much water that company uses in a month. A: Probably more of it than you can shake a stick at.

   5 more examples

   Q: How many units did they complete last month? A: Almost two hundred, which is more than you can shake a stick at.

   Q: How much grain did they harvest last month? A: Almost six thousand tons, which is more grain than you can shake a stick at.

   "[L]aziness, cousin, laziness,—which ruins more souls than you can shake a stick at."

   1851 June – 1852 April, Harriet Beecher Stowe, chapter 16, in Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life among the Lowly, volume (please specify |volume=I or II), Boston, Mass.: John P[unchard] Jewett & Company; Cleveland, Oh.: Jewett, Proctor & Worthington, published 20 March 1852, →OCLC

   "[H]e's laid out more 'Federates dan he can shake a stick at."

   1883, Edward Payson Roe, chapter 39, in His Sombre Rivals: A Story of the Civil War

   "I've got more companies than you can shake a stick at. There's the Alameda & Contra Costa Land Syndicate, the Consolidated Street Railways, the Yerba Buena Ferry Company, the United Water Company, the Piedmont Realty Company, the Fairview and Portola Hotel Company, and half a dozen more that I've got to refer to a notebook to remember."

   1910, Jack London, chapter 16, in Burning Daylight