standoff
Americannoun
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standoffs
plural
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a standing off or apart; aloofness.
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a tie or draw, as in a game.
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something that counterbalances.
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a prop for holding the top of a ladder away from the vertical surface against which it is leaning.
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Electricity. an insulator that supports a conductor above a surface.
adjective
noun
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the act or an instance of standing off or apart
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a deadlock or stalemate
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any situation or disposition of forces that counterbalances or neutralizes
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rugby short for stand-off half
verb
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(intr) to navigate a vessel so as to avoid the shore, an obstruction, etc
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(tr) to keep or cause to keep at a distance
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(intr) to reach a deadlock or stalemate
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(tr) to dismiss (workers), esp temporarily
Usage
What does standoff mean? A standoff is a situation in which no progress can be made or people are prevented from taking further action. Close synonyms are stalemate and deadlock. Such a standoff often involves two or more opposing sides that refuse to budge, back down, or change their position. A political standoff is one in which both sides refuse to come to an agreement or compromise on some policy or course of action. In the context of policing, the word standoff refers to a situation in which a person refuses to be arrested but is keeping police away by threatening violence. In movies, the tense moment when two characters are pointing weapons at each other and waiting for the other to make a move is often called a standoff. Standoff can also refer to what happens when a game or other competition ends in a tie or without a winner being declared. Much less commonly, standoff can be used as an adjective to mean aloof, reserved, or unfriendly, as in The hostess greeted us in a distant, standoff manner. The adjective standoffish is more commonly used to mean the same thing. Standoff is sometimes hyphenated, as stand-off. Example: The old enemies stared at each other in a tense standoff, both of them refusing to give an inch.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of standoff
First recorded in 1830–40; noun, adj. use of verb phrase stand off
Explanation
A standoff happens when two people or groups can't move forward or proceed because of a disagreement, or when two teams have a tied score. In chess, a stalemate is a kind of standoff—when there's no way for a player to move without putting herself in check. Another example of a standoff is when two governments are bargaining or negotiating but can't reach an agreement, and so make no progress. You might see protesters and police officers in a standoff, or witness friends argue about politics and reach a standoff, where neither one will change their mind.
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:
Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant said he was "concerned at the prolonged standoff" which he said was "ultimately in nobody's interests".
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
Soon, the police were there in force, but the dedication of the outraged, chanting crowd demanding the men’s release ensured this would be no ordinary standoff.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
The Philippines, which has been locked for more than a decade in an intense standoff with China over disputed territorial claims in the South China Sea, appeared to be a top target.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
And so we have a bit of a standoff here.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2026
What began as a tense standoff between the two superpowers now threatened to spiral into an actual nuclear conflict.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
After two hours of sporadic clashes and standoffs, Congress Square was cleared by the police although a handful of people remained.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
At the same time, carriage negotiations with programmers are more fraught, often leading to standoffs where channels are pulled, disrupting service to customers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 9, 2026
That idea has long been used to describe evolutionary standoffs between species, such as hosts and the parasites or pathogens that attack them.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 26, 2026
Three lead cases, which came to court in September, are being prioritised to try to decide those questions - but any of these legal standoffs could end up before the Supreme Court.
From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2025
Oleg Gordievsky's career as a double agent had landed him right in the middle of one of the most dangerous standoffs of the Cold War—and into scalding-hot water with the KGB.
From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau
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.
