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Synonyms

stand for

British  

verb

  1. to represent or mean

  2. to be or become a candidate for

  3. to support or recommend

  4. informal to tolerate or bear

    he won't stand for any disobedience
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
stand for Idioms  

  1. Represent, symbolize, as in The stars and stripes stands for our country . [Early 1600s]

  2. Advocate, support, uphold, as in The National Writers Union stands for freedom of the press . [c. 1300] Also see stand up for .

  3. Put up with, tolerate. This usage is generally in a negative context, as in Mother will not stand for rude behavior . [Late 1800s] Also see hold still for .

  4. stand for something . Have some value or importance, as in She realized that appearances do stand for something . This usage dates from the mid-1800s but was preceded by stand for nothing , meaning “be worthless,” dating from the late 1300s. Also see stand in for .

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.

Before he left, he recounted telling his family: "Even if I die, please stand for your rights. Stand for who you are".

From Barron's • Mar. 16, 2026

And officials at her allied super PAC, Stand for America, said they, too, planned to forge ahead.

From New York Times • Jan. 23, 2024

Help for the store came from non-governmental organisations, including Stand for Women, an initiative supporting women-led small and medium enterprises in the area.

From BBC • Aug. 3, 2023

Republican Nikki Haley, Trump’s U.N. ambassador and a former South Carolina governor, picked Betsy Ankney, executive director of Haley’s Stand for America political action committee, to manager her presidential campaign .

From Seattle Times • Apr. 1, 2023

PAW So he wouldn't Stand for the Harvest Field that afternoon.

From Fables in Slang by Newman, Clyde J.

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.