status quo
[ kwoh ]
/ kwoʊ /
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noun
the existing state or condition.
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Also called status in quo .
Origin of status quo
First recorded in 1825–35, status quo is from Latin status quō literally, “state in which”
Words nearby status quo
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for status quo
British Dictionary definitions for status quo
status quo
/ (kwəʊ) /
noun
the status quo the existing state of affairs
Word Origin for status quo
literally: the state in which
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
Cultural definitions for status quo
status quo
The existing order of things; present customs, practices, and power relations: “People with money are often content with the status quo.” From Latin, meaning “the state in which.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Idioms and Phrases with status quo
status quo
The existing condition or state of affairs, as in We don't want to admit more singers to the chorus; we like the status quo. This term, Latin for “state in which,” has been used in English since the early 1800s.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.