poised; poising
1
a
: balance
especially
: to hold or carry in equilibrium
carried a water jar poised on her head
b
: to hold supported or suspended without motion in a steady position
poised her fork and gave her guest a knowing look—
Louis Bromfield
Louis Bromfield2
: to hold or carry (the head) in a particular way
3
: to put into readiness : brace
1
: a stably balanced state : equilibrium
a poise between widely divergent impulses—F. R. Leavis
F. R. Leavis
: a centimeter-gram-second unit of viscosity equal to the viscosity of a fluid that would require a shearing force of one dyne to impart to a one-square-centimeter area of an arbitrary layer of the fluid a velocity of one centimeter per second relative to another layer separated from the first by a distance of one centimeter
Synonyms
Examples of poise in a Sentence
Verb
She poised her pencil above the paper and waited for the signal to begin writing.
the disgraced business executive poised herself for the difficult press conference
Recent Examples on the WebKeri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
However, the company remains poised to expand into property management teams at the state level as scale is built up.
—Kyle Russell, USA TODAY, 8 Apr. 2024
The country is now poised to change the legal status of a new class of psychoactive drugs: psychedelics.
—Jane C. Hu, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2024
And some labor economists believe that elevated borrowing costs for consumers and businesses, which were steered higher by the Fed, are poised to crack certain parts of the economy the longer businesses have to live with them.
—Talmon Joseph Smith, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2024
Rise has 22 locations nationwide, with four more poised to open this year.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2024
Newcomer Katerina McCrimmon is poised to be the greatest star
Is there any Broadway show that carries as much baggage for its leading lady as Funny Girl?
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 4 Apr. 2024
Under his leadership, Miramax is poised to build on its incredible legacy of top-tier library properties, films, and television projects.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 2 Apr. 2024
Under his leadership, Miramax is poised to build on its incredible legacy of top-tier library properties, films and television projects.
—Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Apr. 2024
Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 25 Mar. 2024
Haq, on the other hand, manages to deliver a period-appropriate performance reminiscent of classic Bollywood, channeling Khanna’s poise and charisma.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024
Composer Hans Zimmer’s drone-laden score never strikes a tone of triumphalism; so much of this movie’s tricky poise is his.
—Joshua Rothkopf, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2024
Can the team maintain poise and excellence over a grueling two-month tournament?
—Neal B. Freeman, National Review, 20 Mar. 2024
Stone, for her part, handled the moment with poise.
—Ryan Faughnder, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2024
The poise is gone, and there’s a kind of fun camaraderie with his costars in its place.
—EW.com, 18 Feb. 2024
That speaks volumes to the Thunder’s ability to stay locked in throughout the season and maintain poise.
—Nick Crain, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
Or you may be lured by it, drawn to it, inching closer to study every fine detail of composition, the faultless poise with which each element confirms the necessary presence of the others.
—Longreads, 11 Jan. 2024
Verb
Even so, one of them — Miramontes — is now grappling with legal issues in a different case that seemed poised to fade away but has since been revived by a California appeals court.
—Keri Blakinger, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
However, the company remains poised to expand into property management teams at the state level as scale is built up.
—Kyle Russell, USA TODAY, 8 Apr. 2024
The country is now poised to change the legal status of a new class of psychoactive drugs: psychedelics.
—Jane C. Hu, The Atlantic, 8 Apr. 2024
And some labor economists believe that elevated borrowing costs for consumers and businesses, which were steered higher by the Fed, are poised to crack certain parts of the economy the longer businesses have to live with them.
—Talmon Joseph Smith, New York Times, 5 Apr. 2024
Rise has 22 locations nationwide, with four more poised to open this year.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Apr. 2024
Newcomer Katerina McCrimmon is poised to be the greatest star
Is there any Broadway show that carries as much baggage for its leading lady as Funny Girl?
—Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 4 Apr. 2024
Under his leadership, Miramax is poised to build on its incredible legacy of top-tier library properties, films, and television projects.
—Katcy Stephan, Variety, 2 Apr. 2024
Under his leadership, Miramax is poised to build on its incredible legacy of top-tier library properties, films and television projects.
—Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Apr. 2024
Noun
Black also likes Kinley’s poise and competitiveness and won’t hesitate to use him in the ninth inning.
—Patrick Saunders, The Denver Post, 25 Mar. 2024
Haq, on the other hand, manages to deliver a period-appropriate performance reminiscent of classic Bollywood, channeling Khanna’s poise and charisma.
—Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024
Composer Hans Zimmer’s drone-laden score never strikes a tone of triumphalism; so much of this movie’s tricky poise is his.
—Joshua Rothkopf, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2024
Can the team maintain poise and excellence over a grueling two-month tournament?
—Neal B. Freeman, National Review, 20 Mar. 2024
Stone, for her part, handled the moment with poise.
—Ryan Faughnder, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2024
The poise is gone, and there’s a kind of fun camaraderie with his costars in its place.
—EW.com, 18 Feb. 2024
That speaks volumes to the Thunder’s ability to stay locked in throughout the season and maintain poise.
—Nick Crain, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
Or you may be lured by it, drawn to it, inching closer to study every fine detail of composition, the faultless poise with which each element confirms the necessary presence of the others.
—Longreads, 11 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'poise.' 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 poise
Cite this Entry
“Poise.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poise. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
poise
1 of 2 verb
poised; poising
1
a
: balance entry 2 sense 5
especially
: to hold or make firm or steady by balancing
b
: to hold without motion in a steady position : hover
a bird poised in the air
2
: to put into readiness : brace
poised for action
poise
2 of 2 noun2
a
: a dignified self-confident manner
a speaker of great poise
b
: a way of carrying oneself : bearing
Medical Definition
: a cgs unit of viscosity equal to the viscosity of a fluid that would require a shearing force of one dyne to impart to a one square-centimeter area of an arbitrary layer of the fluid a velocity of one centimeter per second relative to another layer separated from the first by a distance of one centimeter
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