stay
1to spend some time in a place, in a situation, with a person or group, etc.: He stayed in the army for ten years.
to continue to be as specified, as to condition or state: to stay clean.
to hold out or endure, as in a contest or task (followed by with or at): Please stay with the project as long as you can.
to keep up, as with a competitor (followed by with).
Poker. to continue in a hand by matching an ante, bet, or raise.
to stop or halt.
to pause or wait, as for a moment, before proceeding or continuing; linger or tarry.
Archaic. to cease or desist.
Archaic. to stand firm.
to stop or halt.
to hold back, detain, or restrain, as from going further.
to suspend or delay (actions, proceedings, etc.).
to appease or satisfy temporarily the cravings of (the stomach, appetite, etc.).
to remain through or during (a period of time): We stayed two days in San Francisco.
to remain to the end of; remain beyond (usually followed by out).
Archaic. to await.
the act of stopping or being stopped.
a stop, halt, or pause; a standstill.
a sojourn or temporary residence: a week's stay in Miami.
Law. a stoppage or arrest of action; suspension of a judicial proceeding: The governor granted a stay of execution.
Informal. staying power; endurance.
Idioms about stay
stay the course, to persevere; endure to completion.
Origin of stay
1Other definitions for stay (2 of 3)
a flat strip of steel, plastic, etc., used especially for stiffening corsets, collars, etc.
a long rod running between opposite walls, heads or sides of a furnace, boiler, tank, or the like, to strengthen them against internal pressures.
stays, Chiefly British. a corset.
to support, prop, or hold up (sometimes followed by up).
to sustain or strengthen mentally or spiritually.
to rest on (something, as a foundation or base) for support.
to cause something to become fixed or to rest on (a support, foundation, base, etc.)
Origin of stay
2Other definitions for stay (3 of 3)
any of various strong ropes or wires for steadying masts, funnels, etc.
to support or secure with a stay or stays: to stay a mast.
to put (a ship) on the other tack.
(of a ship) to change to the other tack.
Origin of stay
3Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use stay in a sentence
Mr. Bachner stayed because he realized the city is filled with artisans and the possibilities fascinated him.
The Photographer Who Gave Up Manhattan for Marrakech | Liza Foreman | January 6, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTAs we waited for my plane to come in, we stayed silent for a long time.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile | Robert Ward | January 3, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTHe stayed up all night, looking at the streets he had biked around as a kid with a whole new sensibility.
DJ Spooky Wants You To Question Everything You Know About Music, Technology, and Philosophy | Oliver Jones | December 27, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTShe told me how he stayed home from work so he could play with his small son.
The Life and Hard Times Of The Family A Cuban Defector Left Behind | Brin-Jonathan Butler | December 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTA 1907 contract leases the plot of land to the Belgika corporation for five years, but it stayed for much longer.
But just wishing never made anyone larger or taller, not even a pig, and Squinty stayed the same size.
Squinty the Comical Pig | Richard BarnumOne old aunt in particular visited him twice a year, and stayed six months each time.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun; | VariousThe ne'er-do-well blew, like seed before the wind, to distant places, but mankind at large stayed at home.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice | Stephen LeacockHe bowed, with a flourish of his plumed hat, and would with that have taken his departure but that the Seneschal stayed him.
St. Martin's Summer | Rafael SabatiniI stayed with my drink until Jorgensen drifted in to have a couple with me and talk of the old days.
Fee of the Frontier | Horace Brown Fyfe
British Dictionary definitions for stay (1 of 3)
/ (steɪ) /
(intr) to continue or remain in a certain place, position, etc: to stay outside
(copula) to continue to be; remain: to stay awake
(intr often foll by at) to reside temporarily, esp as a guest: to stay at a hotel
(tr) to remain for a specified period: to stay the weekend
(intr) Scot and Southern African to reside permanently or habitually; live
archaic to stop or cause to stop
(intr) to wait, pause, or tarry
(tr) to delay or hinder
(tr)
to discontinue or suspend (a judicial proceeding)
to hold in abeyance or restrain from enforcing (an order, decree, etc)
to endure (something testing or difficult, such as a race): a horse that stays the course
(intr; usually foll by with) to keep pace (with a competitor in a race, etc)
(intr) poker to raise one's stakes enough to stay in a round
(tr) to hold back or restrain: to stay one's anger
(tr) to satisfy or appease (an appetite, etc) temporarily
(tr) archaic to quell or suppress
(intr) archaic to stand firm
stay put See put (def. 18)
the act of staying or sojourning in a place or the period during which one stays
the act of stopping or restraining or state of being stopped, etc
the suspension of a judicial proceeding, etc: stay of execution
Origin of stay
1- See also stay out
British Dictionary definitions for stay (2 of 3)
/ (steɪ) /
anything that supports or steadies, such as a prop or buttress
a thin strip of metal, plastic, bone, etc, used to stiffen corsets, etc
(often foll by up) to prop or hold
(often foll by up) to comfort or sustain
(foll by on or upon) to cause to rely or depend
Origin of stay
2- See also stays (def. 1)
British Dictionary definitions for stay (3 of 3)
/ (steɪ) /
a rope, cable, or chain, usually one of a set, used for bracing uprights, such as masts, funnels, flagpoles, chimneys, etc; guy: See also stays (def. 2), stays (def. 3)
Origin of stay
3Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Other Idioms and Phrases with stay
In addition to the idioms beginning with stay
- staying power
- stay over
- stay put
- stay the course
- stay with
also see:
- here to stay
- (stay) in touch
- (stay on one's) right side
- should have stood (stayed) in bed
- stick (stay) with
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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