Military. a temporary cessation of offensive actions; cease-fire; truce.
a stand-down for the Christmas holidays.
a work stoppage or layoff.
(intr) to resign or withdraw, esp in favour of another
(intr) to leave the witness box in a court of law after giving evidence
to go or be taken off duty
Leave a witness stand, as in The judge told her to stand down . [Late 1600s]
Withdraw, as from a political contest or a game or race, as in Harry decided to stand down as a candidate for mayor . [Late 1800s]
Go off duty, as in The American forces were ordered to stand down . [Early 1900s]
First recorded in 1920–25; noun use of verb phrase stand down
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The boats were rejecting commands and were unable to reliably maneuver away from other traffic, prompting a safety stand-down, according to people familiar with the exercise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 27, 2025
The Red Roses will be without their star full-back against Scotland as Kildunne faces a mandatory minimum 12-day stand-down period after showing concussion symptoms against Australia.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2025
President Bill Clinton helped mediate a stand-down, then signed the U.S.–China Military Maritime Consultative Agreement, which established a forum to discuss these sorts of disputes, while also reviving a U.S. military treaty with the Philippines.
From Slate ● Oct. 4, 2023
“During this stand-down, we will focus on safety and training protocols to ensure our pilots and crews have the knowledge, training and awareness to safely complete their assigned mission.”
From New York Times ● Apr. 28, 2023
During the first full day of Alpha’s stand-down, I didn’t run into Bobby Jorgenson once.
From "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien
But later that month both sides had agreed to "stand down".
From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026
On Sunday night, a US official said both sides would "stand down for now", and that vessels could "move freely" in and around the strait.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
"Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely" in and around the Strait of Hormuz, the official said in an email.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper was among the senior ministers telling her boss to stand down, Sky News reported.
From Barron's ● Jun. 21, 2026
“And this boy needs a little vacation. Far as I’m concerned we can stand down till this thing is over.”
From "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers
I was in the armed forces when we had some very significant stand-downs.
From Slate ● Feb. 26, 2021
The Pentagon did not define whether stand-downs pausing regular activity across the U.S. military might last minutes or hours, or what commanders would do during that time to express opposition to extremism.
From Reuters ● Feb. 3, 2021
He said a decision by the Tasmanian government on Thursday morning, to force visitors to the island from the mainland to go through 14 days of quarantine, meant more stand-downs.
From The Guardian ● Mar. 18, 2020
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
