stance

noun

ˈstan(t)s 

1

chiefly Scotland

a

: station

b

: site

2

a

: a way of standing or being placed : posture

b

: intellectual or emotional attitude

took an antiwar stance

3

a

: the position of the feet of a golfer or batter preparatory to making a swing

b

: the position of both body and feet from which an athlete starts or operates

Synonyms of stance

• posture
• attitude

Examples of stance in a Sentence

a slightly aggressive stance

Recent Examples on the Web

The statement, in which Bryan supposedly spoke up defending his stance from the night before, came from an X account that purports to belong to the singer but does not. — Chris Willman, Variety, 3 Oct. 2026

An OutKick reporter pressed both White and Fire coach Alex Sarama on their stances on whether biological males should be allowed to compete in women's sports. — Jackson Thompson Outkick, FOXNews.com, 3 Oct. 2026

Hichilema’s stance matches that of regional rivals who are trying to use the scramble for critical minerals to drive economic development. — Paige Bruton, semafor.com, 2 Oct. 2026

This stance against the cloud is likely to appeal to consumers who are increasingly concerned about who has access to their data. — Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, The Verge, 2 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English stance, staunce, from Middle French estance position, posture, stay, from Old French, from Vulgar Latin *stantia, from Latin stant-, stans, present participle of stare to stand

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing stance

• closed stance
• open stance

Rhymes for stance

• chance
• dance
• glance
• hance
• hanse
• lance
• manse
• prance
• trance
• advance
• askance
• enhance

Kids Definition

stance

noun

ˈstan(t)s 

1

: a way of standing or being placed : posture

a soldier with an erect stance

2

: a way of thinking or feeling

took an opposing stance on the issue