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REFERENCE

stand

v. · n.
US //ˈstænd// UK //stˈænd// stand
Irregular verb past stood past participle stood
  1. 1 to be on one's feet (v.)
    A1 Beginner

    to be in a vertical position on your feet, not sitting or lying down.

    to maintain an upright position supported by one's feet. Intransitive in this primary physical sense.

    Example

    We had to stand at the back of the room because all the chairs were taken.

    Example

    The crowd was asked to stand for the national anthem, creating a solemn atmosphere before the match began.

    Usage

    Often used with 'up' to describe the movement from sitting to standing.
  2. 2 to tolerate (v.)
    B1 Intermediate

    to be able to accept or deal with something unpleasant.

    to tolerate or endure something. Usually used in negative constructions or questions with 'can' or 'could'.

    Example

    I can't stand the smell of smoke in the house.

    Example

    She could not stand the constant interruptions during her presentation, eventually asking the audience to hold their questions until the end.

    Usage

    Commonly followed by a noun or a gerund (-ing form).
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  1. 3 to be in a state or condition (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to be in a particular situation or level.

    to be in a specified state, condition, or relative position.

    Example

    As the rules stand now, you cannot enter the building without an ID.

    Example

    The financial records show exactly where the company stands after the recent market fluctuations.

    Usage

    Often used in the phrase 'as it stands' to mean 'in its current condition'.
  2. 4 to be a candidate (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate British English

    to try to get elected for a job in government.

    to be a candidate in an election. Primarily British English usage; American English prefers 'run'.

    Example

    She decided to stand for Parliament in the next election.

    Example

    Several local business owners have announced their intention to stand for the council seats being vacated this autumn.
  3. 5 an opinion or protest (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    a strong effort to defend your ideas or to stop something from happening.

    a determined effort to resist something or to maintain an opinion.

    Example

    The local community is taking a stand against the new highway project.

    Example

    The senator took a firm stand on environmental protection, refusing to back down despite pressure from industrial lobbyists.

    Usage

    Commonly used with the verb 'take'.
  4. 6 a support or holder (n.)
    A2 Elementary

    a piece of furniture or a frame used to hold or support something.

    a structure or device designed to hold something upright or to display items.

    Example

    He left his wet umbrella in the stand by the front door.

    Example

    The microphone stand was adjusted to accommodate the height of the next speaker in the debate.
  5. 7 a small shop or stall (n.)
    A2 Elementary

    a small table or temporary structure where things are sold.

    a stall or booth where goods are sold or information is provided, often at a market or fair.

    Example

    We bought some fresh lemonade from a stand on the corner.

    Example

    The company rented a large stand at the trade fair to showcase their latest software innovations to potential investors.
  6. 8 stadium seating (n.)
    B1 Intermediate Sport

    the sloping area with seats for people watching a sports game.

    a large, typically tiered structure for seating spectators at a sporting venue. Often used in the plural.

    Example

    The fans in the stands cheered loudly when the home team scored.

    Example

    Security personnel were stationed throughout the stands to ensure the safety of the capacity crowd during the championship final.
Etymology 1

From Middle English stonden, standen (verb) and stand, stond (noun, from the verb), from Old English standan (“to stand, occupy a place”), from Proto-West Germanic standan, from Proto-Germanic standaną (“to stand”), from Pre-Germanic sth₂-n-t-´, an innovative extended n-infixed form of Proto-Indo-European steh₂-. Cognates Cognate with Scots staund (“to stand”), Yola sthoan, sthoane, sthone, stoane (“to stand”), North Frisian staan, stoune, stuine, stun, stönje, stööne (“to stand”), Saterland Frisian stounde (“to stand”), Danish stande (“to stand”), Faroese and Icelandic standa (“to stand”), Norwegian Nynorsk standa, stå (“to stand”), Swedish stånda (“to stand”), Gothic 𐍃𐍄𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌰𐌽 (standan, “to stand”). From the related Proto-Germanic stāną (“to stand”): West Frisian stean (“to stand”), Alemannic German staa (“to stand”), Central Franconian stiehn, stohn, stonn (“to stand”), Cimbrian stean (“to stand”), Dutch staan (“to stand”), German stehen, stehn (“to stand”), Low German stahn, staon (“to stand”), Luxembourgish stoen (“to stand”), Vilamovian śtejn (“to stand”), Yiddish שטיין (shteyn, “to stand”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, and Swedish stå (“to stand”), Faroese stá (“to stand”). Also from steh₂-: Breton and Cornish sevel (“to stand”), Welsh sefyll (“to stand”), Latin stō (“to stand”), Greek σταυρός (stavrós, “cross”), Albanian shtyllë (“pillar; column”), Latvian stāvēt (“to stand”), Lithuanian stóti, stovėti (“to stand”), Belarusian стая́ць (stajácʹ, “to stand”), Bulgarian стоя́ (stojá, “to stand, stay”), Czech stát (“to stand”), Macedonian стои (stoi, “to stand”), Polish stać, stojeć (“to stand”), Russian стоя́ть (stojátʹ, “to stand”), Serbo-Croatian ста̏јати, stȁjati (“to stand”), Slovak stáť (“to stand”), Slovene státi (“to stand”), Ukrainian стоя́ти (stojáty, “to stand”), Armenian ստվար (stvar, “large, thick; dense”), Ossetian стын (styn, “to stand up”), Northern Kurdish rawestîn (“to stand”), Persian ایستادن (istâdan), وایسادن (vâysâdan), وایستادن (vâystâdan, “to stand up”), Tocharian A ṣtäm- (“to stand”), Tocharian B stäm- (“to stand”), Sanskrit स्था (sthā, “to stand”).

Etymology 2

From Middle English stand, stande, stond, stonde, stoonde, probably from Middle Dutch stande, from Old Dutch standan (“to stand”), from Frankish standan. Forms with -o- may show influence of stonden (“stand”, verb).

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