plural stages
1
a
: one of a series of positions or stations one above the other : step
b
: the height of the surface of a river above an arbitrary zero point
flood stage
2
a(1)
: a raised platform
(2)
: the part of a theater on which the acting takes place and which often includes the wings
(3)
: the acting profession : the theater as an occupation or activity
(4)
b
: a center of attention or scene of action
3
a
: a scaffold for workmen
b
: the small platform of a microscope on which an object is placed for examination
4
a
: a place of rest formerly provided for those traveling by stagecoach : station
b
: the distance between two stopping places on a road
c
5
a
: a period or step in a process, activity, or development: such as
(1)
: one of the distinguishable periods of growth and development of a plant or animal
the larval stage of an insect
(2)
: a period or phase in the course of a disease
also
: the degree of involvement or severity of a disease
b
: one passing through a (specified) stage
6
: an element or part of an electronic device (such as an amplifier)
7
: one of two or more sections of a rocket that have their own fuel and engine
staged; staging; stages
1
: to produce (something, such as a play) on a stage
2
: to produce or cause to happen for public view or public effect
stage a track meet
staged a fight
stage a hunger strike
3
: to arrange or decorate a house, condominium, etc. in order to enhance its appeal to prospective buyers or renters
Though it can be a bit pricey, having your home staged for sale is worth considering.—
Casey Bond
Casey Bond4
: to determine the phase or severity of (a disease) based on a classification of established symptomatic criteria
also
: to evaluate (a patient) to determine the phase, severity, or progression of a disease
: intended to represent a type or stereotype
a stage Irishman
a stage French accent
plural stages
1
: a usually unpaid internship in a professional kitchen that is part of a chef's training
The stereotypical stage—whether culinary school externship or a two-day effort—involves cleaning mushrooms by the bucketful or chopping onions until your eyeballs dissolve.—Jonathan Kauffman
Jonathan Kauffman2
: a person who holds such an internship : stagiaire
… a Michelin-starred restaurant will most likely have at least one stage in its kitchen on any given night, and many of America's best restaurants have an ever-changing roster of stages constantly passing through the kitchen doors.—Matt Tripp
Matt Tripp
staged; staging; stages
: to intern in a professional kitchen usually without pay as part of one's training to become a chef
I'd attended culinary school, staged at Jean Georges in New York City and worked the line at Gramercy Tavern.—Sophie Brickman
Sophie BrickmanSynonyms
Examples of stage in a Sentence
Noun (1)
an early stage of the disease
children at the same stage of development
The actors walked out onto the stage.
He was on stage for the entire show.
He has no intention of leaving the political stage.
The company wants to compete on the world stage.
Verb (1)
The school stages two plays each year.
The students staged a protest.
The school is staging a track meet.
The prisoners are staging a hunger strike.
The photograph of the two leaders shaking hands was deliberately staged.
His career as a singer appeared to be over, but then he staged a comeback.
Recent Examples on the WebEthan Shanfeld, Variety, 14 Apr. 2024
Dressed in a shredded plaid outfit, her blond hair twisted into a pair of knots atop her head, the 54-year-old frontwoman was addressing the gigantic crowd gathered before the festival’s main stage for just that purpose.
—Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2024
The unusual move comes amid uncertainty over whether the two candidates will face off on a stage ahead of the November vote.
—Hadas Gold, CNN, 14 Apr. 2024
No Doubt ended their nine-year hiatus with a buzzy Coachella set on the main stage on Saturday night.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 14 Apr. 2024
Explore the big blue world with this lively new stage musical based on the beloved Pixar film.
—The Enquirer, 14 Apr. 2024
Moving Day, the time to set the stage for the final round, unfolded on a perfect Saturday at the 88th Masters and ... imperfect golf became the order of the day.
—Bob Spear, Charlotte Observer, 14 Apr. 2024
Simpson’s flight from police in a white Ford Bronco in June 1994 set the stage.
—Elahe Izadi, Washington Post, 14 Apr. 2024
Donning a bustier covered up with a feathered bathrobe, Carey later sang a medley of songs while perched on a couch in the middle of the stage.
—Mark Gray, Peoplemag, 13 Apr. 2024
Frank Shyong, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2024
Long story short, in 1982, Key West staged a faux-protest against the U.S. government for causing a debilitating traffic jam along the only road out of the Keys.
—Katherine Alex Beaven, Travel + Leisure, 11 Apr. 2024
On Wednesday morning, Common Ground staged a press conference outside Daniels' apartment building, calling on Daniels to meet with tenants and hear their concerns.
—Journal Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2024
If, for example, China decides to make a move in the Taiwan Strait, Russia could simultaneously stage a provocative large-scale military drill in Europe, helping China by straining U.S. capacities to respond.
—Alexander Gabuev, Foreign Affairs, 9 Apr. 2024
To honor this commitment, the U.S. has annually staged naval drills near and with the Philippines — the latest of which happened earlier this week in combination with Japan and Australia, as a show of force and strong interoperability between the allies in the face of China’s territorial ambitions.
—Peter Aitken, Fox News, 9 Apr. 2024
The 22-year-old American had led from the first round and looked to be cruising wire-to-wire to his second PGA Tour title in San Antonio before compatriot Denny McCarthy staged a truly remarkable late surge.
—Jack Bantock, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
Republicans staged part of theirs at the White House, a radical break from tradition that mixed politics with the trappings of governance and prompted Democrats to charge the Trump administration with a litany of Hatch Act violations.
—Jonathan Weisman, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2024
That’s not bad company to share the Plaza de Cesar Chavez stage with.
—Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2024
Yola Robert, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2023
The results met the main goal of a mid-stage clinical trial, with the potential for less frequent injections than a similar experimental treatment being developed by a competing drugmaker.
—Adam Feuerstein, STAT, 22 Mar. 2023
Codenamed Katharina, the new high-performance electric drivetrain boasts ultrafast wheel-by-wheel torque vectoring, multi-stage cooling, a supplementary brake-by-motor energy regeneration system and new dynamic features like piloted drifting and the ability to perform tank turns.
—Georg Kacher, Car and Driver, 16 Feb. 2023
The multi-stage Royal George Theatre has closed.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 9 Sep. 2022
And until a new, unified security strategy is in place, one that treats the expanding network and the multi-stage attack chain holistically, this issue is not going to improve.
—Fortinet Contributor, Forbes, 14 June 2021
The surge coincides with multi-stage state elections marked by large gatherings and roadshows, and the Kumbh Mela, or pitcher festival, celebrated in northern Haridwar city, where tens of thousands of Hindu devotees daily take a holy dip into the Ganges river.
—chicagotribune.com, 29 Mar. 2021
Faster turnover would jeopardize the multi-stage review and thus compromise authority and comprehensiveness.
—Andrew Moseman, Discover Magazine, 12 Feb. 2010
The venue is multi-stage GenZ paradise, Elsewhere, in Brooklyn, NY.
—Colin Kirkland, SPIN, 27 Feb. 2023
Noun
Saturday’s Coachella set marked the first time the green drum kit and Bradley’s guitar were on the same stage since the last Sublime tour in 1996.
—Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 14 Apr. 2024
Dressed in a shredded plaid outfit, her blond hair twisted into a pair of knots atop her head, the 54-year-old frontwoman was addressing the gigantic crowd gathered before the festival’s main stage for just that purpose.
—Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2024
The unusual move comes amid uncertainty over whether the two candidates will face off on a stage ahead of the November vote.
—Hadas Gold, CNN, 14 Apr. 2024
No Doubt ended their nine-year hiatus with a buzzy Coachella set on the main stage on Saturday night.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 14 Apr. 2024
Explore the big blue world with this lively new stage musical based on the beloved Pixar film.
—The Enquirer, 14 Apr. 2024
Moving Day, the time to set the stage for the final round, unfolded on a perfect Saturday at the 88th Masters and ... imperfect golf became the order of the day.
—Bob Spear, Charlotte Observer, 14 Apr. 2024
Simpson’s flight from police in a white Ford Bronco in June 1994 set the stage.
—Elahe Izadi, Washington Post, 14 Apr. 2024
Donning a bustier covered up with a feathered bathrobe, Carey later sang a medley of songs while perched on a couch in the middle of the stage.
—Mark Gray, Peoplemag, 13 Apr. 2024
Verb
Last year the 37-year-old staged a Filipino holiday market across the street from HiFi to draw crowds to the neighborhood.
—Frank Shyong, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2024
Long story short, in 1982, Key West staged a faux-protest against the U.S. government for causing a debilitating traffic jam along the only road out of the Keys.
—Katherine Alex Beaven, Travel + Leisure, 11 Apr. 2024
On Wednesday morning, Common Ground staged a press conference outside Daniels' apartment building, calling on Daniels to meet with tenants and hear their concerns.
—Journal Sentinel, 11 Apr. 2024
If, for example, China decides to make a move in the Taiwan Strait, Russia could simultaneously stage a provocative large-scale military drill in Europe, helping China by straining U.S. capacities to respond.
—Alexander Gabuev, Foreign Affairs, 9 Apr. 2024
To honor this commitment, the U.S. has annually staged naval drills near and with the Philippines — the latest of which happened earlier this week in combination with Japan and Australia, as a show of force and strong interoperability between the allies in the face of China’s territorial ambitions.
—Peter Aitken, Fox News, 9 Apr. 2024
The 22-year-old American had led from the first round and looked to be cruising wire-to-wire to his second PGA Tour title in San Antonio before compatriot Denny McCarthy staged a truly remarkable late surge.
—Jack Bantock, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
Republicans staged part of theirs at the White House, a radical break from tradition that mixed politics with the trappings of governance and prompted Democrats to charge the Trump administration with a litany of Hatch Act violations.
—Jonathan Weisman, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2024
That’s not bad company to share the Plaza de Cesar Chavez stage with.
—Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2024
Adjective
As 444 Capital is currently focused on deploying this first D’Amelio Family Fund to deserving mid-stage tech startups, particularly those founded by founders from underrepresented groups.
—Yola Robert, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2023
The results met the main goal of a mid-stage clinical trial, with the potential for less frequent injections than a similar experimental treatment being developed by a competing drugmaker.
—Adam Feuerstein, STAT, 22 Mar. 2023
Codenamed Katharina, the new high-performance electric drivetrain boasts ultrafast wheel-by-wheel torque vectoring, multi-stage cooling, a supplementary brake-by-motor energy regeneration system and new dynamic features like piloted drifting and the ability to perform tank turns.
—Georg Kacher, Car and Driver, 16 Feb. 2023
The multi-stage Royal George Theatre has closed.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 9 Sep. 2022
And until a new, unified security strategy is in place, one that treats the expanding network and the multi-stage attack chain holistically, this issue is not going to improve.
—Fortinet Contributor, Forbes, 14 June 2021
The surge coincides with multi-stage state elections marked by large gatherings and roadshows, and the Kumbh Mela, or pitcher festival, celebrated in northern Haridwar city, where tens of thousands of Hindu devotees daily take a holy dip into the Ganges river.
—chicagotribune.com, 29 Mar. 2021
Faster turnover would jeopardize the multi-stage review and thus compromise authority and comprehensiveness.
—Andrew Moseman, Discover Magazine, 12 Feb. 2010
The venue is multi-stage GenZ paradise, Elsewhere, in Brooklyn, NY.
—Colin Kirkland, SPIN, 27 Feb. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stage.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near stage
Cite this Entry
“Stage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stage. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
stage
1 of 2 noun1
a
: one of the levels into which a structure can be divided
b
: a floor of a building
c
: a shelf or layer especially as one of a series
2
a
: a raised platform
b
: a part of a theater including the acting area
c
: the small platform of a microscope on which an object is placed for examination
3
a
: a center of attention : scene of action
b
: the theatrical profession or art
4
a
: a place of rest formerly provided for those traveling by stagecoach
b
: the distance between stopping places in a journey
c
: stage coach
traveling by stage
5
a
: a period or step in a process, activity, or development
an early stage of a disease
b
: one of the periods of the growth and development of a plant or animal
the larval stage of a beetle
also
: an individual in such a stage
6
: one of two or more sections of a rocket each having its own fuel and engine
a three-stage missile
stage
2 of 2 verb
staged; staging
: to produce or show publicly on or as if on the stage
stages two plays each year
stage a track meet
Medical Definition
stage
1 of 2 noun1
: a period or step in a process, activity, or development: as
a
: one of the distinguishable periods of growth and development of a plant or animal
the larval stage of an insect
b
: a period or phase in the course of a disease
the rash stage of Lyme disease—R. H. Boyle
R. H. Boyle
also
: the degree of involvement or severity of a disease
advanced stage II or III disease (more than 10 positive lymph nodes found after axillary dissection) —M. S. Anscher et al.
M. S. Anscher et al.
c
: one of two or more operations performed at different times but constituting a single procedure
a two-stage thoracoplasty
d
: any of the four degrees indicating depth of general anesthesia
2
: the small platform of a microscope on which an object is placed for examination
stage
2 of 2 transitive verb
staged; staging
: to determine the phase or severity of (a disease) based on a classification of established symptomatic criteria
also
: to evaluate (a patient) to determine the phase, severity, or progression of a disease
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