: a relaxation of status of a military unit or force from an alert or operational posture
stood down; standing down; stands down
1
: to leave the witness stand
2
chiefly British
a
: to go off duty
b
: to withdraw from a contest, a position of leadership, or a state of alert or readiness
: to remove from active duty
In December of 1944, it was judged safe to stand down the Home Guard … after four and a half years of guarding Britain against invasion.—
Anthony Bailey
Anthony BaileyExamples of stand-down in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Rob Wile, NBC news, 5 June 2025
The United States and China announced a 90-day stand-down in most of their punishing tariffs against each other, while a couple of reports on inflation in the United States came in better than economists expected.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2025
Ilan Goldenberg, Foreign Affairs, 22 June 2025
The decision to stand down follows a deal between CHCACT and the state included in the 2026-27 biennial budget passed by legislators last week.
—Katy Golvala, Hartford Courant, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for stand-down
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
That's down from the 145% punitive level Trump had imposed until a handshake agreement in Geneva last month led to a mutual stand-down that also saw China reduce its duties on U.S. imports down to 10% from 125%.
—Rob Wile, NBC news, 5 June 2025
The United States and China announced a 90-day stand-down in most of their punishing tariffs against each other, while a couple of reports on inflation in the United States came in better than economists expected.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2025
Verb
If American casualties are limited, Trump can repeat the playbook of 2020, and the United States can choose to stand down.
—Ilan Goldenberg, Foreign Affairs, 22 June 2025
The decision to stand down follows a deal between CHCACT and the state included in the 2026-27 biennial budget passed by legislators last week.
—Katy Golvala, Hartford Courant, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for stand-down
Cite this Entry
“Stand-down.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stand-down. Accessed 2 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share