Showing results for "standing"

• present participle of stand.

standing

American  

[stan-ding] / ˈstæn dɪŋ /

noun

• standings
  plural

1. rank or status, especially with respect to social, economic, or personal position, reputation, etc..

   He had little standing in the community.

2. good position, reputation, or credit.

   He is a merchant of standing in the community.

3. length of existence, continuance, residence, membership, experience, etc..

   a friend of long standing.

4. Sports. standings, a list of teams or contestants arranged according to their past records.

   According to the standings, the White Sox are leading the division by three games.

5. the act of a person or thing that stands.

6. a place where a person or thing stands.

7. Law. the right to initiate or participate in a legal action.

   having standing as a friend of the court.

---

adjective

1. having an erect or upright position.

   a standing lamp.

2. performed in or from an erect position.

   a standing jump.

3. still; not flowing or stagnant, as water; stationary.

4. continuing without cessation or change; lasting or permanent.

5. continuing in operation, force, use, etc..

   a standing rule.

6. customary or habitual; generally understood.

   We have a standing bridge game every Friday night.

7. Printing. kept for use in subsequent printings.

   standing type.

8. out of use; idle.

   a standing engine.

9. Nautical. noting any of various objects or assemblages of objects fixed in place or position, unless moved for adjustment or repairs.

   standing bowsprit.

10. Knots. noting the part of a rope that is in use and terminates in a knot or the like.

standing British  

/ ˈstændɪŋ /

noun

1. social or financial position, status, or reputation

   a man of some standing

2. length of existence, experience, etc

3. (modifier) used to stand in or on

   standing room

---

adjective

1. athletics

   1. (of the start of a race) begun from a standing position without the use of starting blocks

   2. (of a jump, leap, etc) performed from a stationary position without a run-up

2. (prenominal) permanent, fixed, or lasting

3. (prenominal) still or stagnant

   a standing pond

4. printing (of type) set and stored for future use Compare dead

Synonym Usage

See credit.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unstanding
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• standings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of standing

A Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at stand, -ing ¹, -ing ²

Explanation

The word standing is used for the reputation or rank of a person or institution. The new teacher's standing will be vastly improved if he throws a pizza party once a month. As a noun, standing is frequently used in sports for comparing one team's scores to all the others': "Our standings aren't great, but my softball team is plucky!" It also means "status" or "rank," like the social standing of aristocrats and nobles in medieval society. In law, if you have standing, you have cause to bring a lawsuit against someone else. When you use standing as an adjective, it means "upright" (like your mom's new standing desk) or "permanent" )like your grandparents' standing invitation to visit them any time).

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

standing standings

Antonelli looked to have taken control of the race as he cycled from third on the initial grid to the lead after two standing starts punctuated by a long delay because of Verstappen's crash.

From BBC ● Aug. 23, 2026

More than 17,000 people poured into Veterans Stadium for standing room only, and many more tuned into the first nationally televised high school game.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026

“The landscape would be very familiar to us if you were standing on the surface,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026

Paxton has acknowledged that Talarico’s superior spending has affected the standing of the race.

From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2026

Then all at once I was standing in front of the chief questioner.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

The Dodgers’ series against the Brewers set up a chance for the home team to claw back onto the top of the National League standings.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026

As a Kiwi, I'm biased - but clearly Liam Lawson's been performing at Racing Bulls so far this year, and he's currently 'best of the rest' in the driver standings.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

The Rays sit atop the American League standings.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

Her NI team-mate Anna McCauley finished eighth in the standings, despite being second-fastest in the 800m behind O'Connor.

From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2026

As the first boats crossed the hundred- meter mark, an announcer aboard the shortwave-radio boat broadcast the standings to the loudspeakers down at the finish line.

From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown

Related Words

• place
• prestige
• reputation
• stature
• status