stand-up

or stand·up

[stand-uhp]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR stand-up ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

standing erect or upright, as a collar.

performed, taken, etc., while one stands: a stand-up meal.

designed for or requiring a standing position: a stand-up lunch counter.

(of a fight) characterized by the rapid exchange of many blows with little attention given to defensive maneuvering.

characterized by an erect or bold stance: a stand-up batter who hits many doubles.

Baseball. (of a double or triple) pertaining to a hit that allows the hitter to reach the base safely without having to slide.

(of a comedian) delivering a comic monologue while alone on the stage.

Origin of stand-up

First recorded in 1580–90; adj. use of verb phrase stand up

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for stand-up

good, legal, honest, appropriate, legitimate, proper, honorable, suitable, true, upstanding, vertical, standing, straight, plumb, upright, horizontal, steep, deserved, due, merited

Examples from the Web for stand-up

Contemporary Examples of stand-up

Spencer, 27, is variously described as a writer and a stand-up comic.
Meet Stephen Fry’s Future Husband (Who Is Less Than Half His Age)
Tom Sykes
January 6, 2015
The correspondent does a stand-up next to a burning pile of heroin and gets a taste of its effect.
BBC Reporter Gets High On The Job
Jack Holmes, The Daily Beast Video
December 23, 2014
I watch his stand-up, I watch Chris Rock's, I read Baldwin and Baraka, I listen to Kanye.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Protesting
Rawiya Kameir, Judnick Mayard
December 10, 2014
Early this year, Cosby had a sitcom in development for NBC and a stand-up special in development for Netflix.
How the World Turned on Bill Cosby: A Day-by-Day Account
Scott Porch
December 1, 2014
I read that the series Hello Ladies came from a stand-up show of yours.
Stephen Merchant Talks ‘Hello Ladies’ movie, the Nicole Kidman Cameo, and Legacy of ‘The Office’
Marlow Stern
November 22, 2014

Historical Examples of stand-up

The edge of a stand-up collar, stiff with gold embroidery, rubbed her cheek.
The Rescue
Joseph Conrad
He lighted one, and stuck it on the ledge of the stand-up desk.
Victory
Joseph Conrad
There is no harm in a stand-up fight with the weapons of nature.
The Making Of A Novelist
David Christie Murray
There were ladies in coats and stand-up collars, and gentlemen with ringlets.
All Roads Lead to Calvary
Jerome K. Jerome
This will do away with the stand-up look that sleeves sometimes have.
Textiles and Clothing
Kate Heintz Watson

Word Origin and History for stand-up

adj.

"courageous," 1811, originally of fist fights. To stand (someone) up "fail to keep an appointment" is attested from 1902. Stand-up comic first attested 1966.