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

And so within those highs and lows of the physicality of moving towards the work and standing back from it, there’s also the collaging of it—like the quilt-making of things, of histories. —Amy Verner, Vogue, 20 Dec. 2025

Video from inside the chamber showed the dispute turning violent within seconds, with lawmakers lunging at each other as others stood back and filmed the melee. —Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 17 Dec. 2025

Now, the goalkeeper is back fit again after his operation in July to fix a long-standing back problem. —Pol Ballús, New York Times, 17 Dec. 2025

The dog dug through the snow, chiseling out her masterpiece as the couple stood back laughing at Nala's determination to keep the snowman out of the yard. —Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2025

Rhymes for stand back

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