Flagstick

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A tall, thin pole placed in the hole on a golf green to show its location
2. A slender stick used in golf to indicate where the hole is on the putting surface
3. The upright marker inserted into the cup on a golf course green to guide players aiming for the hole

Etymology: A flagstick is about as transparent as compounds get: it is simply a flag fixed to a stick, and in golf the pairing points to a practical job. The flag marks the hole on the green so players can see the target from far away, and the pole it hangs from is the stick. The word is a plain combination of "flag" and "stick", with no shift in meaning from either part. The two parts keep their ordinary senses here. "Flag" traces to a piece of cloth used as a signal, and "stick" is a long thin piece of wood, so the compound describes exactly the object on the course. Because the pole is removed when a ball is putted, golfers also use the term when calling for it to be pulled out of the cup, which is why the object is named by its function rather than its shape alone.