stay

[ stey ]

/ steɪ /

verb (used without object), stayed or staid, stay·ing.

to spend some time in a place, in a situation, with a person or group, etc.: He stayed in the army for ten years.

to continue to be as specified, as to condition or state: to stay clean.

to hold out or endure, as in a contest or task (followed by with or at): Please stay with the project as long as you can.

to keep up, as with a competitor (followed by with).

Poker. to continue in a hand by matching an ante, bet, or raise.

to stop or halt.

to pause or wait, as for a moment, before proceeding or continuing; linger or tarry.

Archaic. to cease or desist.

Archaic. to stand firm.

verb (used with object), stayed or staid, stay·ing.

to stop or halt.

to hold back, detain, or restrain, as from going further.

to suspend or delay (actions, proceedings, etc.).

to appease or satisfy temporarily the cravings of (the stomach, appetite, etc.).

to remain through or during (a period of time): We stayed two days in San Francisco.

to remain to the end of; remain beyond (usually followed by out).

Archaic. to await.

noun

the act of stopping or being stopped.

a stop, halt, or pause; a standstill.

a sojourn or temporary residence: a week's stay in Miami.

Law. a stoppage or arrest of action; suspension of a judicial proceeding: The governor granted a stay of execution.

Informal. staying power; endurance.

Nearby words

Idioms

stay the course, to persevere; endure to completion.

Origin of stay

1400–50; late Middle English staien < Anglo-French estaier, Old French estai-, stem of ester < Latin stāre to stand

Definition for stays (2 of 3)

stay

[ stey ]

/ steɪ /

noun

something used to support or steady a thing; prop; brace.

a flat strip of steel, plastic, etc., used especially for stiffening corsets, collars, etc.

a long rod running between opposite walls, heads or sides of a furnace, boiler, tank, or the like, to strengthen them against internal pressures.

stays, Chiefly British. a corset.

verb (used with object), stayed, stay·ing.

to support, prop, or hold up (sometimes followed by up).

to sustain or strengthen mentally or spiritually.

to rest on (something, as a foundation or base) for support.

to cause something to become fixed or to rest on (a support, foundation, base, etc.)

Origin of stay

1505–15; apparently same as stay³ (compare Old French estayer to hold in place, support, perhaps derivative of Middle English steye stay³)

Definition for stays (3 of 3)

stay

[ stey ]

/ steɪ /

Chiefly Nautical

noun

any of various strong ropes or wires for steadying masts, funnels, etc.

verb (used with object), stayed, stay·ing.

to support or secure with a stay or stays: to stay a mast.

to put (a ship) on the other tack.

verb (used without object), stayed, stay·ing.

(of a ship) to change to the other tack.

Origin of stay

before 1150; Middle English stey(e), Old English stæg; cognate with German Stag

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

Examples from the Web for stays

But he loses his backpack in the process and it stays with the cops as he flees down the walkway toward Brooklyn.
Protesters Slimed This Good Samaritan Cop|Michael Daly|December 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He stays home one more day and then comes in and seems fine.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days|David Freeman|December 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This is exactly the kind of legal chaos that stays are meant to avoid.
Gay Marriage Chaos Begins|Jay Michaelson|November 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The presidential hopefuls fire up the faithful with promises to extend the Republican revolution to 2016, as Jeb Bush stays mum.
In Texas, Cruz, Perry Crow Over GOP Rout|Tim Mak|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST

There is something about a clown that stays with people: the bright colors, their tendency to be demonstrative.
Nightmares in Face Paint: Why We’ll Always Be Afraid of Clowns|Oliver Jones|October 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She stays with us because she loves us and wants to take care of us.
A Little Question in Ladies' Rights|Parker Fillmore
He stays with her longer: there is no jostling now; the dexterous servant delays the oncoming stream of guests.
A Young Man's Year|Anthony Hope
He goes to Mr. Caraher's saloon now, and stays there for hours, and listens to Mr. Caraher.
The Octopus|Frank Norris
A man who stays out after ten is fined threepence; after eleven the fine is sixpence.
An American at Oxford|John Corbin
She stays in a little cabin I built for her, not far off, replied the hermit.
The Motor Boys Across the Plains|Clarence Young

British Dictionary definitions for stays (1 of 4)

stays

/ (steɪz) /

pl n

rare corsets with bones in them

a position of a sailing vessel relative to the wind so that the sails are luffing or abackCompare irons (def. 2)

miss stays or refuse stays (of a sailing vessel) to fail to come about

British Dictionary definitions for stays (2 of 4)

stay

/ (steɪ) /

verb

(intr) to continue or remain in a certain place, position, etcto stay outside

(copula) to continue to be; remainto stay awake

(intr often foll by at) to reside temporarily, esp as a guestto stay at a hotel

(tr) to remain for a specified periodto stay the weekend

(intr) Scot and Southern African to reside permanently or habitually; live

archaic to stop or cause to stop

(intr) to wait, pause, or tarry

(tr) to delay or hinder

(tr)

to discontinue or suspend (a judicial proceeding)
to hold in abeyance or restrain from enforcing (an order, decree, etc)

to endure (something testing or difficult, such as a race)a horse that stays the course

(intr; usually foll by with) to keep pace (with a competitor in a race, etc)

(intr) poker to raise one's stakes enough to stay in a round

(tr) to hold back or restrainto stay one's anger

(tr) to satisfy or appease (an appetite, etc) temporarily

(tr) archaic to quell or suppress

(intr) archaic to stand firm

stay put See put (def. 18)

noun

the act of staying or sojourning in a place or the period during which one stays

the act of stopping or restraining or state of being stopped, etc

the suspension of a judicial proceeding, etcstay of execution

Word Origin for stay

C15 staien, from Anglo-French estaier, to stay, from Old French ester to stay, from Latin stāre to stand

British Dictionary definitions for stays (3 of 4)

stay

/ (steɪ) /

noun

anything that supports or steadies, such as a prop or buttress

a thin strip of metal, plastic, bone, etc, used to stiffen corsets, etc

verb (tr) archaic

(often foll by up) to prop or hold

(often foll by up) to comfort or sustain

(foll by on or upon) to cause to rely or depend

Word Origin for stay

C16: from Old French estaye, of Germanic origin; compare stay ³

British Dictionary definitions for stays (4 of 4)

stay

/ (steɪ) /

noun

a rope, cable, or chain, usually one of a set, used for bracing uprights, such as masts, funnels, flagpoles, chimneys, etc; guySee also stays (def. 2), stays (def. 3)

Word Origin for stay

Old English stæg; related to Old Norse stag, Middle Low German stach, Norwegian stagle wooden post

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

Word Origin and History for stays (1 of 3)

stay

"to remain," mid-15c., from Middle French estai-, stem of ester "to stay or stand," from Old French, from Latin stare "to stand" (cf. Italian stare, Spanish estar "to stand, to be"), from PIE root *sta- "to stand" (see stet). Originally "come to a halt;" sense of "remain" is first recorded 1570s.

Noun senses of "appliance for stopping," "period of remaining in a place," and (judicial) "suspension of proceeding" all developed 1525-1550. Stay-at-home (adj.) is from 1806. Stay put is first recorded 1843, American English. "To stay put is to keep still, remain in order. A vulgar expression" [Bartlett]. Phrase stay the course is originally (1885) in reference to horses holding out till the end of a race.

Word Origin and History for stays (1 of 3)

stay

n.1

"support, prop, brace," 1510s, from Middle French estaie "piece of wood used as a support," perhaps from Frankish *staka "support," from Proto-Germanic *stagaz (cf. Middle Dutch stake "stick," Old English steli "steel" stæg "rope used to support a mast"), from PIE *stak- (see stay (n.2)). If not, then from the root of stay (v.). Stays "laced underbodice" is attested from c.1600.

Word Origin and History for stays (2 of 3)

stay

n.2

"strong rope which supports a ship's mast," from Old English stæg, from Proto-Germanic *stagan (cf. Dutch stag, Low German stach, German Stag, Old Norse stag), from PIE *stak-, ultimately an extended form of root *sta- "to stand" (see stet). The verb meaning "secure or steady with stays" is first recorded 1620s.

Idioms and Phrases with stays

stay

In addition to the idioms beginning with stay

staying power
stay over
stay put
stay the course
stay with

also see:

here to stay
(stay) in touch
(stay on one's) right side
should have stood (stayed) in bed
stick (stay) with

stay

verb (used without object), stayed or staid, stay·ing.

verb (used with object), stayed or staid, stay·ing.

noun

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RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of stay

Definition for stays (2 of 3)

stay

noun

verb (used with object), stayed, stay·ing.

Origin of stay

Definition for stays (3 of 3)

stay

noun

verb (used with object), stayed, stay·ing.

verb (used without object), stayed, stay·ing.

Origin of stay

Examples from the Web for stays

British Dictionary definitions for stays (1 of 4)

stays

pl n

British Dictionary definitions for stays (2 of 4)

stay

verb

noun

Word Origin for stay

British Dictionary definitions for stays (3 of 4)

stay

noun

verb (tr) archaic

Word Origin for stay

British Dictionary definitions for stays (4 of 4)

stay

noun

Word Origin for stay

Word Origin and History for stays (1 of 3)

stay

Word Origin and History for stays (1 of 3)

stay

Word Origin and History for stays (2 of 3)

stay

Idioms and Phrases with stays

stay