stand guard

Idioms

Watch over, act as a lookout, as in We'll climb the tree and get the apples if Josh will stand guard, or There's a parking space; stand guard while I make a U-turn and get to it. This term alludes to the military defense of posting guards to watch for the enemy.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

stand guard

Wolves have been observed swatting the birds away, even appearing to designate a pack member to stand guard.

From Barron's ● Mar. 12, 2026

People are taking each other’s kids to school, organizing shifts for people to stand guard and protect immigrants in their neighborhoods.

From Salon ● Jan. 26, 2026

Incoherent hieroglyphs plate the walls, plastic pharaohs stand guard in the check-in lane, and taxis idle under the haunches of a gargantuan Sphinx.

From Slate ● Nov. 18, 2025

Its members stand guard at historical ceremonies and attend regular army training sessions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 14, 2025

They would stand guard to keep a careful eye on anyone approaching from the outside.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

stand guard

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Related Words