Mexican standoff

Definition of Mexican standoffnext
as in halt
a point in a struggle where neither side is capable of winning or willing to give in in the battle over bedtime the parents and their son are at a Mexican standoff

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of Mexican standoff The top echelon of Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon has dissolved into a circle of mutual recrimination and enmity worthy of a Mexican standoff from a Quentin Tarantino film. — The Editors, National Review, 28 Apr. 2025 Ahmet Şık, a former journalist and an opposition MP, likened the situation to a Mexican standoff, a confrontation in which no strategy exists that allows any party to achieve victory. — Guney Yildiz, Forbes, 24 May 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Mexican standoff
halt
Noun
  • The government that came soon after brought it all to a screeching, heavily consequential halt.
    — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026
  • But ongoing deportations from the United States threaten to bring these transfers, which are a lifeline for the country’s economy and its people, to a halt.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Mexican standoff.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Mexican%20standoff. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.

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