stand·off
ˈstand-ˌȯf 
1
2
: used for holding something at a distance from a surface
a standoff insulator
stood off; standing off; stands off
Synonyms
Examples of standoff in a Sentence
Noun
The two governments are currently in a standoff over who has rights to the land.
after two hours they had played to a 5–5 standoff
Adjective
the client's standoff attitude suggested that this was going to be a strictly business relationship
Recent Examples on the Web
Maria Varenikova Nicole Tung, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2024
How it is tied to the other events: The siege as well as the standoff in Ruby Ridge, Idaho, fed into antigovernment sentiment and was cited by Timothy McVeigh as his cause to commit the Oklahoma City bombing.
—James Powel, USA TODAY, 19 Apr. 2024
The standoff features an impressive bit of fight choreography on Sawai's part.
—Ashley Boucher, EW.com, 17 Apr. 2024
The trigger for the latest Israel-Iran standoff is the April 1 bombing of an Iranian building adjacent to the Iranian Embassy in Damascus, in which seven high-ranking Iranian military officers from the Islamic Republican Guard were killed.
—Tracy Wilkinson, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
As the sky darkened, tensions over the standoff seemed to disappear from people’s minds.
—Arelis R. Hernández, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
One fatal standoff is between two women of color who appear to be roughly the same age.
—Amy Nicholson, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024
An elderly woman and two children remained inside the house during the standoff, police said.
—Scooty Nickerson, The Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2024
The standoff reflects how a decades-long battle over the character and future of the Jewish state has become graver since Oct. 7.
—Johnatan Reiss, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
Suhasini Raj, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2024
Sharing your beliefs can stir the pot when the moon stands off with Mercury.
—USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2024
In the video, Wade stands off to the side of the Vanity Fair Oscar Party carpet to take photos of Union from the side.
—Sabienna Bowman, Peoplemag, 12 Mar. 2024
At spring practice, Williams can frequently be seen standing off to the side while other defensive tackles go through drills.
—Kortay Vincent, Kansas City Star, 8 Mar. 2024
The Housewives, standing off to the side, weren’t safe: Merce was out of the purse — and speckled onto their dresses, their faces, their hair.
—Gia Kourlas, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2024
Hubert Point-Du Jour’s Ralph Abernathy stands off to the side and then complains that Martin treats him like an afterthought.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Jan. 2024
According to Truman, Circus Girl Resting was created by an artist who stood off from the portrait and threw paint at it.
—Diane Scharper, Washington Examiner, 12 Jan. 2024
Throughout the clip, Kim never drops the weight as her trainer stands off to the side.
—Liza Esquibias, Peoplemag, 5 Jan. 2024
Noun
The standoff ended when Ukrainian soldiers, surrounded, ran out of ammunition; more than 2,500 soldiers surrendered.
—Maria Varenikova Nicole Tung, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2024
How it is tied to the other events: The siege as well as the standoff in Ruby Ridge, Idaho, fed into antigovernment sentiment and was cited by Timothy McVeigh as his cause to commit the Oklahoma City bombing.
—James Powel, USA TODAY, 19 Apr. 2024
The standoff features an impressive bit of fight choreography on Sawai's part.
—Ashley Boucher, EW.com, 17 Apr. 2024
The trigger for the latest Israel-Iran standoff is the April 1 bombing of an Iranian building adjacent to the Iranian Embassy in Damascus, in which seven high-ranking Iranian military officers from the Islamic Republican Guard were killed.
—Tracy Wilkinson, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
As the sky darkened, tensions over the standoff seemed to disappear from people’s minds.
—Arelis R. Hernández, Washington Post, 8 Apr. 2024
One fatal standoff is between two women of color who appear to be roughly the same age.
—Amy Nicholson, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024
An elderly woman and two children remained inside the house during the standoff, police said.
—Scooty Nickerson, The Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2024
The standoff reflects how a decades-long battle over the character and future of the Jewish state has become graver since Oct. 7.
—Johnatan Reiss, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
Verb
Whereas the United States and China are engaged in a new kind of cold war over economic dominance, India and China have had troops standing off at their border since 1962.
—Suhasini Raj, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2024
Sharing your beliefs can stir the pot when the moon stands off with Mercury.
—USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2024
In the video, Wade stands off to the side of the Vanity Fair Oscar Party carpet to take photos of Union from the side.
—Sabienna Bowman, Peoplemag, 12 Mar. 2024
At spring practice, Williams can frequently be seen standing off to the side while other defensive tackles go through drills.
—Kortay Vincent, Kansas City Star, 8 Mar. 2024
The Housewives, standing off to the side, weren’t safe: Merce was out of the purse — and speckled onto their dresses, their faces, their hair.
—Gia Kourlas, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2024
Hubert Point-Du Jour’s Ralph Abernathy stands off to the side and then complains that Martin treats him like an afterthought.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Jan. 2024
According to Truman, Circus Girl Resting was created by an artist who stood off from the portrait and threw paint at it.
—Diane Scharper, Washington Examiner, 12 Jan. 2024
Throughout the clip, Kim never drops the weight as her trainer stands off to the side.
—Liza Esquibias, Peoplemag, 5 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'standoff.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Standoff.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/standoff. Accessed 26 Apr. 2024.
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