stand back

phrasal verb

stood back; standing back; stands back

1

: to take a few steps backwards

The paramedics told the crowd to stand back.

2

: to stop doing something or being actively involved in something for a time in order to think about it and make decisions in a calm and reasonable way

It's time to stand back and take a long hard look at your problems.

Examples of stand back in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

For the most part, van Hove stands back and lets his actors do the heavy lifting, which is a sign of a master director who understands exactly how to serve a text. —Demetrios Matheou, HollywoodReporter, 22 Nov. 2025

Recovery is reactive—standing back up after the punch. —Sj Studio, Sourcing Journal, 21 Nov. 2025

Erivo jumped in action, fighting Wen off with help from security while Grande stood back, visibly shocked. —Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 17 Nov. 2025

The song has experienced a resurgence thanks to the TikTok challenge, where two people stand back to back, with one person lip-synching the 4 Non Blondes song while the other sings Minaj's rap from her 2012 track. —Virginia Chamlee, PEOPLE, 8 Nov. 2025

Rhymes for stand back

• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback