▪ I. standing, vbl. n.
(ˈstændɪŋ)
[f. stand v. + -ing1.]
1. a. The action of the vb. stand, in various senses; an instance of this.
| 1382 Wyclif Ecclus. xxvii. 15 The myche swering speche shal sette stonding [1388 schal make stondyng up] of heer, for fer, to the hed [Vulg. horripilationem capiti statuet]. 1398 Trevisa Barth. de P.R. xiii. ii. (1495) 440 Pytte water is thickest and worst to defye..for stondynge of the water. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 477/1 Stondynge, noþer syttynge ne walkynge, status. c 1450 [see sitting vbl. n. 1]. c 1530 Judic. Urines iii. iii. 48 b, The standyng long tyme of y⊇ burbels in y⊇ vrinal sheweth that y⊇ sekenes hath long tyme contynued. 1561 Norton & Sackv. Gorboduc v. ii. 27 One sort that saw the dangerous successe Of stubborne standing in rebellious warre. 1678 Walton Life Sanderson b 4, His former standing for a Proctors place, and being disappointed, must prove much displeasing. 1688 Holme Armoury iii. 382/1 A long piece of Copper..having the ends bent down..and then bent out again for its more steady standing. 1770 Langhorne Plutarch, Marcus Crassus (Rtldg.) 385/1 When they saw the depth of the Roman battalions..and the firmness of their standing, they drew back. 1840 Barham Ingol. Leg. Jackd. Rheims, He cursed him in sitting, in standing, in lying. |
| attrib. 1900 H. Lawson On Track 38 Another timber, much inferior in grain and ‘standing’ quality, was plentiful. |
b. With
advs. (See
stand v. IV.)
standing out:
† concr. a projection. (
Obs.)
| 1608 Topsell Serpents 247 About the mouth there appeare and seeme to bud forth three eminenties or standings out. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. iii. ii. 191 Poore Trespasses, More monstrous standing by. 1616 Lane Contin. Sqr.'s Tale x. 599 Other ancientes it [this towne] Rosalia call; others, the standinge vp of them which fall. 1622 Fletcher Beggars Bush v. ii, And since the standing out of Bruges, where Hemskirk had hid her, till she was near lost. 1683 Moxon Mech. Exerc., Printing xvii. ¶3 They raise a Bur on the Face..to keep the Matrice off the Carriages and Bodies... But..the hollow standing off of the Face of the Matrice from the Carriages and Bodies, subjects the Mettal to run between them. 1884 Law Rep. 26 Chanc. Div. 790 In order to shew acquiescence he must shew a standing by with full knowledge of what was being done. |
| Winchester School. 1903 C. Coleridge Life C. M. Yonge iii. 98 It was the week before the ‘Standing up’ i.e. the repetition of an incredible number of lines of Latin or Greek Poetry. |
c. The state of being without movement either progressive or retrogressive; the condition of being at a standstill. Also
standing still.
† standing of the sun = solstice 1.
| c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. vii. 71 Brasike is sowe at stondyng of the sonne. c 1530 Judic. Urines ii. vi. 26 b, Yf the vryne come out in lesse quantyte..than it dede in the standyng or in the encresyng, or..in the begynnyng of the ague. 1552 Huloet s.v. Heate, Solstitium..is sometyme more aptlye taken for the staye or standynge of the sunne, whyche is twise in the yeare. 1648 Hexham ii, Den stil-standt der Zonne, the Solstice, or the Standing still of the Sunne. |
d. Erect position; condition of not falling or being overthrown.
lit. and
fig. Now
rare or
Obs.| 1709 Stanhope Paraphr. IV. 283 They..not only recover their Standing, but even profit themselves of their Fall. 1737 Gentl. Mag. VII. 556/2 He kick'd every one of them out of Office..except Buckingham, and he ow'd his Standing to the Prince. 1746–7 Hervey Medit. & Contempl. (1818) 73 Afraid to plunge into the abyss of eternity, yet utterly unable to maintain their standing on the verge of life. |
e. Phr.
to be in good standing with = to stand well with, be in favour with:
cf. stand v. 15 c.
| 1912 Eng. Hist. Rev. Oct. 652 For a number of years after this Eustace was in good standing with the English king. |
† 2. Manner of standing.
a. Relative position (of a number of persons or things, or of one with reference to others.)
b. Situation, site, aspect (of a building, etc.).
c. Posture, attitude (of a person); position (of a thing) as erect, horizontal, etc.
Obs.| a. c 1407 Lydg. Reas. & Sens. 6591 Y Haue declared..The maner and the ordynaunce Of ther [i.e. the queen's pawns] stondyng. 1591 Savile Tacitus, Hist. iii. xxii. 127 The order and standing of the Vitellian army I dare not for certaine auouch. 1600 Surflet Country Farm iii. xliv. 510 That you may fitly appoint the standings of trees. 1712 J. James tr. Le Blond's Gardening 84 If the Eye be applied too near the Stick, a Defect in the standing of the others can't be so well perceived. 1733 W. Ellis Chiltern & Vale Farm. 350 The double Rows were apt to heat each other by their close standing. |
| b. 1538 Elyot Dict., Situs,..also the settynge or standinge of a place, which is now called the syte. 1561 T. Norton Calvin's Inst. i. xiv. (1634) 73 To set and fasten some of them [sc. stars] in their standings, and to other some, to grant a free course. 1647 Clarendon Hist. Reb. iv. §8 They..resolved that the standing of the communion-table in all churches should be altered. 1665 Sir T. Herbert Trav. (1677) 83 Baroch is visible by reason of her high standing a good way distant. 1682 ‘R. Burton’ Admir. Curios. 67 Yet is the Structure better than the standing thereof, as being some⁓what low on the one side. |
| c. 1540 Morysine tr. Vives' Introd. Wisd. A viij b, A ryght gentyll man is he, whom nature hathe fashyoned and set, as it were in a standyng for the recepte of vertue. 1545 R. Ascham Toxoph. ii. (Arb.) 147 The fyrste poynte is..to take suche footyng and standyng as shal be..cumlye to the eye. 1611 Second Maiden's Trag. 1041 (Malone Soc.), I like the standing of my head too well to haue it mended. 1683 Moxon Mech. Exerc., Printing xxiv. ¶2 [They] try whether the Stone lye truly Horizontal, which they know by the standing of the Water: For if the Water delate itself equally about the middle of the Stone, the Stone lies Horizontal. 1801 T. Roberts Engl. Bowman 294 The Standing, the posture in which an archer stands, when he shoots. |
† d. The position of the indicator of a graduated instrument.
Obs.| 1669 Sturmy Mariner's Mag. ii. xiii. 82 Keeping in memory such standing of the Staff, I take off the one Cross, and set the Staff again. 1676 H. More Remarks Contents b 4 b, The various standing of the Mercury in the Tube, according to the change of weather. a 1734 North Life Ld. Keeper Guilford (1742) 293 The standing of the Mercury, in the Tube, is always taken upon the Distance of the upper from the lower Superficies. |
3. An act of standing erect on one's feet; a period during which one keeps a standing position.
| 1653 Walton Angler ix. [xii.] 181 They may be at one standing, all catch'd one after another. 1850 Lady S. Lyttelton Corr. xvi. (1912) 407, I never was more knocked up than last night, by..several long standings with Her Majesty. 1904 Edin. Rev. Jan. 112 The gentleman in Horace who could reel you off two hundred verses at a standing. |
4. A standing-place, station; standing-room.
a. The place in or upon which a person stands. Phrases
to take, keep one's standing. ?
Obs. Also, accommodation for one person to stand (at a show or the like); standing-room.
Cf. stand n. 11.
| 1382 Wyclif Isa. xxii. 19 And I shal putte thee out fro thi stonding, and fro thi seruyse I shal depose thee. 1542 Brinklow Compl. 34 b, Thei must take standings in Shoters Hill, in Newmarket Heath, and in Stangate Hole. 1571 Digges Pantom. i. xii. D iij, The Base being euen with your standing. Ibid., The distance betweene the two standings is vndoubtedly the lengthe. 1586 Marlowe 1st Pt. Tamburl. i. ii, Keep all your standings and not stir a foot. c 1595 Capt. Wyatt R. Dudley's Voy. W. Ind. (Hakl. Soc.) 59 Himselfe toke his standinge on the open deck. 1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence (1607) Andria ii. ii, I got me vpon a high standing, and looked round about me. 1609 Holland Amm. Marcell. xxiv. x. 255 The rest of the souldiors..gained the passing high and difficult bankes, and firmely kept their standing. a 1626 Middleton Women beware Women i. iii, Now they come!.. You, sirrah, get a standing for your mistress. 1661 Dryden To H.S. Majesty 38 Your cavalcade the fair spectators view From their high standings, yet look up to you. 1719 De Foe Crusoe ii. (Globe) 392 In this [hollow] Tree they both took their Standing. 1795 Cowper Needless Alarm 120 We have at least commodious standing here. 1801 Strutt Sports & Past. ii. i. 61 His longest shot fell upwards of four hundred and eighty yards from his standing. 1809 Malkin Gil Blas xii. i. (Rtldg.) 422 Along the streets where the procession was to pass were scaffolds, on one of which I purchased a standing. |
b. fig.| 1563–83 Foxe A. & M. 707/2 God..hath found a way by this facultie of Printing..to cast downe the foundation of his [the pope's] standing. 1656 Cromwell Sp. 17 Sept., And so many as..do own your standings wherein the Providence of God hath set and called you to this work, will carry it on. 1669 O. Sansom in Acc. Life (1710) 70 With earnest desires, that you would consider your own States and Standings, every one of you, whether you are not in the Broad way. 1676 W. Allen Addr. Non-Conf. 47 Some of them believed this; and so kept their standing in the Church. 1856 N. Brit. Rev. XXVI. 43 What should prevent our receding and taking a still lower standing? |
† c. A hunter's station or stand from which to shoot game.
Obs.| c 1400 Master of Game (MS. Digby 182) xxxv, Þenne shulde þe maister of þe game..meete þe kynge and brynge hym to his stondynge and telle hym what game is withinne þe sette. 1551 Sir J. Williams Accompte (Abbotsf. Club) 87 For newe makinge a standinge in Combes parke. 1576 Turberv. Venerie lxvi. 187 And thus you may trayne a foxe to a standing and kyll him in an evening with a Crossebowe. 1600 Maids Metam. iii. 1 And yet my maister wayteth with his bowe, Within a standing, for to strike a Doe. 1616 Manifest. Abp. of Spalato's Motives App. iii. 6 Imitating the Huntsman, who bending his bow to strike a faire Stagge, puts forth towards the Standing, for shew, other raskall Deere with him. |
d. A place in which cattle and horses may stand under shelter; a stable; standing-accommodation for one animal; stable-accommodation for horses or a horse. Now
dial.| c 1440 Pallad. on Husb. i. 523 Let make an hous for bestis... Of forkis, & of boord, & bouwes colde. A stondyng most be maad. 1510 Stanbridge Vocabula (W. de W.) C v, Stabulum, a stable or a stondynge. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts 610 They also had a care to couer all the flower [of their sheep-stables] with strawe..to the end they might not be annoyed in their owne standings. 1714 T. Ellwood Life (1765) 66 Sir, don't you forget to pay for your Horse's standing? 1813 Sporting Mag. XLII. 54 Converting..all the loose stalls of a stable into loose standings. 1886 W. Somerset Word-bk. s.v., So John 've a-tookt the Dree Cups (Inn); I do year 'tis capical premises, an stannins for up thirty osses. |
| transf. 1798 Times 28 June 4/2 A Neat Cottage [with]..standing for chaise, stable and good garden. |
† e. Stopping-place, goal.
Obs. rare.
| c 1510 Gesta Rom. (W. de W.) A ij, The whyle she was in takynge vp the thyrde balle, the knyght gate afore her, and was fyrst at the standynge. |
† f. A place of settlement or encampment.
Obs.| 1598 R. Grenewey Tacitus, Ann. i. x. (1622) 19 The fift, and one and twentith legion, lodged in winter standings three⁓score miles of, at Vetera. 1611 Speed Theat. Gt. Brit. (1614) 137/2 But then no longer able to hold out against them, they left their standings and departed the land. |
g. A stand for carriages plying for hire.
| 1853 Act 16 & 17 Vict. c. 33 §6 The several standings for hackney carriages..within the Metropolitan district. |
h. Law (
orig. U.S.). A position from which one has the right to prosecute a claim or seek legal redress; the right itself;
= locus standi s.v. locus n.1 4. (See also
quot. 1962.)
| 1924 Chicago Junction Case in U.S. Reports CCLXIV. 271 Mr. Justice George Sutherland, dissenting... The complainants have no standing, to vindicate the rights of the public. 1962 Stanford Law Rev. May 433 Defined generally, if not very helpfully, in the context of this article ‘standing’ is the word of art for an interest which the federal courts hold worthy of legal protection from the effects of unconstitutional governmental action. 1967 H. W. R. Wade Administrative Law (ed. 2) iv. 126 These remedies are not restricted by the notion of locus standi. Every citizen has standing to invite the court to prevent some abuse of power. 1972 N.Y. Law Jrnl. 24 Oct. 3/3 It is sufficient for purposes of standing that plaintiff establish a causal connection between the violations alleged, be they fraud or breach of fiduciary duty, and plaintiff's loss. 1982 Law Reports (Appeal Cases) June 639 The rules as to ‘standing’ for the purpose of applying for prerogative orders..are not to be found in any statute. |
5. A position for or occupied by a booth, stall, or the like; a booth or stall occupying such position. Now
dial.| a 1547 in J. R. Boyle Hedon (1875) App. 80 Evrie man that hath a standing of vij. fote on Holyruddaie..shall paye ij.d. 1577 Leigh Surv. (1596) D 3, Booths, Standings, shambles, and tolles,..of a weeklie market. 1626 in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 338 If any..of the company of taylors..shall departe his shopp or standing, to worke in any man's house. 1766 Entick London IV. 252 The clothiers..had their booths and standings within the church-yard. 1808 Beverley Lighting Act 16 Placing of stalls and standings on the market and fair days in the streets. 1858 Simmonds Dict. Trade, Standing, a stall placed in a market, or on the foot pavement in a street; a workman's loom in a lower flat or story. 1886 W. Somerset Word-bk. s.v., Butcher Morgan 've a-paid for a stan'in' in our market 'is number o' years. |
† 6. Something upon which a person or thing stands; a stage; a base, foundation.
Obs.| 1382 Wyclif 2 Chron. vi. 13 Salomon hadde maad the brasyn stondynge [1388 foundement, Vulg. basis], and hadde putte it in the mydil of the grete hous. 1556 Chron. Grey Friars (Camden) 71 Item the xxvj. of September [1551] was the stondynge at the tabulle in Powlles was removyd into the sowth. 1558 in Jupp Carpenters' Co. (1848) 51 Payd for the caryage of our standyng into fanchirche Strete at the commyng in of quene elizabeth vij d. 1585 Higins Junius' Nomencl. 190/2 Fori,..the galleries or standings for the beholders of plaies: the scaffoldes. a 1641 Sir J. Finett For. Ambass. (1656) 64 The French Ambassador in the first window..and the Spanish in a standing dressed up of purpose over the Porters lodge. |
7. † a. Continuance in existence; duration.
Obs.| 1600 J. Hamilton in Cath. Tract. (S.T.S.) 243 This heresie [adultery] baith repugnes to the trew law of God and is preiudiciable to the lawful standing of Noble houses. 1611 Shakes. Wint. T. i. ii. 431 The Fabrick of his Folly, whose foundation Is pyl'd vpon his Faith, and will continue The standing of his Body. 1690 in Nairne Peerage Evid. (1874) 26 All..teynd duties payable furth of the estate during the standing of the marriage. |
b. The state or fact of having existed for a longer or shorter period of time; degree of antiquity. (Now only of immaterial things.) Chiefly in phrases,
of old standing,
ancient standing,
† late standing.
Cf. long standing.
| 1656 Earl of Monmouth tr. Boccalini's Advts. fr. Parnass. i. l. (1674) 65 The Titolari were of much later standing than Doctors. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 154 The next thing to be handled is, Of what standing the world may be. 1688 Holme Armoury iii. 318/2 Another fashion of Compasses..not much differing from them though of an Elder standing. c 1710 C. Fiennes Diary (1888) 68 The Skull was whole and the teeth firme, tho' of so many yeares standing. 1780 Mirror No. 86 It expelled a gout, of thirty years standing. 1796 Pegge Anonym. (1809) 49 This is reckoned a proverb of a late standing. 1801 Strutt Sports & Past. i. i. 13 These privileges were of ancient standing. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. I. i. ii, There is a quarrel of twenty-five years' standing with the Parlement. 1888 Bryce Amer. Commw. II. xl. 89 Other restrictions..such as the exclusion of clergy⁓men, which still exists in six States, and is of old standing. 1891 Law Times XC. 395/1 She was suffering from tuberculosis of long standing. |
c. Age (of a tree).
| 1830 J. G. Strutt Sylva Brit. 3 An oak of sixty years standing will in twenty-four years double its contents of timber. 1837 P. Keith Bot. Lex. 245 If we estimate its [the oak's] standing upon the principle of the usual rule, we shall have to give it an antiquity of upwards of 2000 years. |
8. a. Length of service, experience, or residence; position as determined by seniority in membership of a university, a profession, etc.
| 1580 G. Harvey in Grosart Spenser's Wks. I. 436 What greater and more odious infamye for one of my standinge in the universitye and profession abroade then to be reckoned in the Beade-roule of Inglish Rimers. 1648 W. Jenkyn Blind Guide i. 7 Sundry who exceed Master Goodwin in standing, and very much in understanding. 1651 Lamont Diary (Maitl. Club) 26 They came in order to the king (from the youngest in standing to the eldest). 1711 Steele Spect. No. 252 ¶3, I am a Practitioner in the Law of some standing, and have heard many eminent Pleaders in my time. 1713 Guardian (1756) I. No. 2. 14 He was sent for a little before he was of bachelor's standing. 1740 J. Clarke Educ. Youth (ed. 3) 120 School-boys, of the oldest Standing. a 1790 T. Warton in Boswell's Johnson an. 1754, One of the fellows, and of Johnson's standing. 1803 Gradus ad Cantabr. 131 Standing; academical age, or rank. ‘Of what standing are you? I am a Senior Soph.’ 1821 Lamb Elia Ser. i. Old & New Schoolm., I know less geography than a school⁓boy of six weeks' standing. 1841 Thackeray Gt. Hoggarty Diam. vi, The Company was only four years old, and the oldest clerk in it had not six months more standing in it than I. 1876 Firth Munic. Lond. 42 Such of the Liverymen of the various City Companies as are of one year's standing, free of the City. 1888 Burgon 12 Gd. Men I. i. 69 He inquired after my standing in the University. 1892 Law Times XCIII. 550/1 To whose kind co-operation I, as a judge of long standing, feel that I ought to pay my tribute. |
b. of a thing.
| 1885 R. L. & F. Stevenson Dynamiter i, One of those gigantic Highlanders of wood which have almost risen to the standing of antiquities. |
¶ c. (A person's) age.
rare.
| 1789 C. Smith Ethelinde (1814) II. 113 You was considering how much younger you look than she does, though you are, I suppose, about the same standing. |
9. a. Grade or rank in society, a profession, the world of commerce, religion, or the like; status.
| 1607 Shakes. Timon i. i. 31 Pain. A Picture sir... Poet. Admirable: How this grace Speakes his owne standing: what a mentall power This eye shootes forth. 1727 De Foe Eng. Tradesm. i. (1841) 7 The young Man should confine himself absolutely to such as are of like standing with himself. 1844 H. H. Wilson Brit. India iii. ix. III. 529 Barristers of high standing. 1862 Trollope Orley F. xxxv, She also thought of Sir Peregrine's grey hairs, and of his proud standing in the county. 1866 Crump Banking i. 12 We must..keep before us the commercial standing of the countries in which these banks were created. 1866 Mrs. Gaskell Wives & Dau. xiii, She took standing with him as a young lady at once. 1867 Smiles Huguenots vii. (1880) 121 Satisfactory evidence was required of the character and religious standing of the new refugees. 1889 M. Creighton Hist. Ess. vii. (1902) 232 Men of some standing in the neighbourhood were chosen. 1902 V. Jacob Sheep-Stealers ix, Now that he had become a man of money and standing. |
b. The position of a person or organization in a graduated table,
esp. in
Sport and
Educ. Also, a score indicating this. Freq.
pl. Chiefly
N. Amer.| 1881 N.Y. Herald 12 Sept. 11/5 The appended table will show the standing of the clubs up to date. 1904 Spalding's Official Base Ball Guide (ed. 28) 108 To find the Standing of the Clubs—Divide the number of games won by games played. Example: Pittsburgh, in 1903, played 140 games and won 91; 91 divided by 140 equals .650. 1917 R. Earle Life at U.S. Naval Academy v. 113 Class standing is affected in some measure by conduct. 1938 K. Banning Annapolis Today vii. 99 Their academic and conduct records..in combination with the aptitude marks..will become factors when their final class standings for the four-year course are computed. 1968 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 13 Feb. 8/1 The appointment leaves 10 vacancies in the 102-seat Senate. Standings now are: Liberal 60; Conservative 29; Independent 2; Independent Liberal 1. 1977 Belfast Tel. 24 Jan. 17/7 He now leads the world drivers' championship standings with 13 points. |
† 10. [Perh. from the
ppl. a.] A tree left standing, a standard. Also, a supporting pole.
Obs.| 1580 in Collect. (O.H.S.) I. 237 He will always leave sufficient standards and standinges. 1800 Hull Advertiser 7 June 3/3 The country people went into the hop-gardens..and some pulled down the standings. |
11. attrib. and
Comb.:
† standing-bar, a bar which brings a person to a stand;
standing-bench, a bench adapted for work to be done standing;
standing-ground, ground upon which a contest is or may be fought or upon which a stand is or may be made,
lit. and
fig.; ground upon which a person or thing may (safely) stand,
lit. and
fig.;
† standing part, the part or role of one who stands;
standing point = standpoint;
standing-post, the spot where one stands;
standing room, space in which to stand; accommodation for persons or a person standing; also in
phr. standing room only,
esp. in a theatre or similar place of resort (
abbrev. S.R.O.
s.v. S 4 a);
† standing stool, a stool for the support of a child while learning to walk. Also standing place.
| 1720 Waterland Eight Serm. viii. 319 Baptism; which was one of the Best Fences to the true Faith, and a *standing-Bar to most Heresies. |
| 1866 Chamb. Encycl. VIII. 691/1 A simple..work-bench, at which shoes may be made standing. Of this *standing-bench, we offer a sketch. |
| 1846 W. H. Mill Five Serm. (1848) 51 In opposing them we shall proceed..on that firm *standing-ground which all our truly great Divines have marked out, of adherence to the principles of the Ancient Church. 1864 Huxley Compar. Anat. vi. 87 Only those [systems of classification] published..since our knowledge of the anatomy of these animals has approached completeness, have now any scientific standing-ground. 1865 Kingsley Herew. vii, How villainous for men on foot, not only to face knights but to bring them down to their own standing ground by basely cutting off their horses' heads! 1874 Stubbs Const. Hist. I. iv. 60 The concessions..had given the invaders a standing-ground. 1895 Educat. Rev. Sept. 120 It offers us a sure standing-ground for our educational theory. |
| 1611 B. Jonson Catiline v. ii, Crassvs. Let vs now take the *standing part. Caesar. We must... Yet I would faine helpe these wretched men. |
| 1847 W. Smith tr. Fichte's Characteristics Present Age xvii. 254 A view taken from the *standing-point of this Age itself. 1862 F. Hall Hindu Philos. Syst. 174 The Vedántins allege, that, from the standing-point of the true state of existence, Brahma alone is real. 1871 L. Stephen Playgr. Eur. (1894) iii. 81 A lovely and almost level ridge..connected it [the mountain top] with our standing-point. 1889 Jessopp Coming of Friars vi. 294 We start from a standing-point..in advance of that of our forefathers. |
| 1905 W. Holman Hunt Pre-Raphaelitism I. xiv. 400 A track leading to it from our *standing-post. |
| 1603 Reg. Mag. Sig. Scot. 514/2 To pay for *standand room, housmaill and uphalding of the saidis hallis and commowne merkett-place. 1807 Cabinet I. 344 To be rewarded at last..by finding—‘a little standing room’! 1812 H. & J. Smith Rej. Addr., Theatre, No room for standing, mis-called standing-room. 1833 Loudon Encycl. Archit. §757 The floor of the standing-room [in a cow-house] ought to be perfectly level. 1837 Barham Ingol. Leg., ‘Monstre’ Balloon, You'll scarcely get standing room, much less a seat. 1843 Penny Cycl. XXVII. 181/1 (Weaving.) Other persons are renters of what is termed a ‘shop of frames’, containing eight or ten frames, let, with standing-room, &c., to the workmen. 1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Brit. Sports ii. viii. i. 462/2 The cabin is obliged to be left partially open, because there is not standing-room beneath the deck. 1889 G. B. Shaw Fabian Ess. in Socialism 11 The board is at the door, inscribed ‘Only standing room left’. 1910 National Police Gaz. (U.S.) 5 Nov. 2/2 The Davenport Lady Minstrels opened their season in Asheville, N.C., recently, to standing room only. 1934 Wodehouse Right Ho, Jeeves ix. 101 The place being loaded down above the Plimsoll mark and standing room only as regarded tortured souls. 1964 Mrs. L. B. Johnson White House Diary 5 June (1970) 154 A standing-room rally in the Senate caucus room. 1981 G. Thompson Murder Mystery xix. 146 That bar is mobbed. Standing room only. |
| 1600 Weakest goeth to Wall F 3, Get him a *standing stoole, And then perhaps the child will learne to goe. 1656 R. Fletcher Martial's Epigr. etc. 130 The elf dares peep abroad, the pretty foole Can wag without a truckling standing-stoole. |
▪ II. standing, ppl. a. (
ˈstændɪŋ)
[f. stand v. + -ing2.] I. That stands upright or on end.
1. a. Of a person, an animal, a statue: That keeps an upright stationary position on the feet.
† Also
rarely of the limb used. Also
fig.| 1576 Fleming Panopl. Epist. 86 The standing image which he hath set in y⊇ Oratorie pulpit. 1611 Bible Lev. xxvi. 1 Ye shall make you no Idoles.., neither reare you vp a standing image. 1714 T. Parkyns Inn-Play (ed. 2) 56 Throw your Lockt Leg against his standing Toe. Ibid. Your standing Leg. 1899 Marg. Benson & Gourlay Temple of Mut i. 8 Two colossal standing statues. |
| absol. a 1300 Cursor M. 27581 We may see bitide and ofsise Þe standand fall, the falland rise. |
b. slang. (See
quots.)
| a 1700 B. E. Dict. Cant. Crew, s.v. Budge, Standing-Budge, the Thieves Scout or Perdu. 1851 Mayhew Lond. Labour I. 102 An elderly man..stood up to speak on behalf of the ‘paper-workers’ ‘flying-stationers’ and ‘standing⁓patterers’. 1859 Hotten's Slang Dict. 101 Standing patterers, men who take a stand on the curb of a public thoroughfare, and deliver prepared speeches to effect a sale of any articles they have to vend. |
c. said of posture.
| 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. III. vi. v, And we..endeavoured to talk gallantly in a standing posture. |
d. transf. Of an action: Performed in a standing posture.
| 1637 Rutherford Lett. (1836) I. 324 Sometimes he [Jesus] sendeth me out a standing drink, and whispereth a word through the wall. 1667 Milton P.L. vi. 243 That Warr..sometimes on firm ground A standing fight, then soaring on main wing Tormented all the Air. 1856 Kane Arct. Expl. II. xxviii. 284 Now, with incessant labour and standing⁓hauls, she moved at a snail's pace. 1870 Mil. Engineering (1879) I. ii. ix. §110 The mode of executing the sap..is done in two ways, called kneeling sap, and standing sap, from the attitude in which the leading sapper works. |
e. spec. in
Sport (
esp. Athletics): performed from a standing position (
cf. crouch n.2 b). Also
standing start, of a motor car, etc.: a start,
esp. of a race or performance trial, from a stationary state.
| 1875 Encycl. Brit. III. 13/1 The running hop-step-and-jump, standing high-leaping, and standing wide-leaping. 1891 H. H. Griffin Athletics 85 The standing long and high jumps are rarely ever heard of. 1900 Motor-Car World Oct. 9/2 Jenatzy..covered..the first kilometre..with a standing start in 57 seconds. 1933 Illustr. London News 9 Dec. 962/1 (Advt.), Speed up Brooklands Test hill from a standing start, 16 m.p.h. 1951 D. W. Maurer in Publ. Amer. Dial. Soc. xvi. 60 Standing start, a type of start in which the horses line up exactly at the pole marking the distance they are to run and break at the starter's command... No starting gate is used. 1960 E. S. & W. J. Higham High Speed Rugby vii. 63 When a long pass is needed, the ‘dive’ pass, done properly, has advantages over the ‘standing’ pass. 1973 ‘D. Rutherford’ Kick Start vi. 138, I was making a standing start... The Norton Commando accelerates from 0 to 100 m.p.h. in 13 seconds. |
f. standing ovation: a rousing ovation conferred by an audience standing as a mark of enthusiastic approval,
esp. after a speech.
| 1969 B. Russell Autobiogr. III. ii. 87, I was deeply touched by being given a standing ovation when I rose to speak. 1971 H. Wilson Labour Govt. xxvii. 564 At the end there was a spontaneous and wild standing ovation. 1981 S. Jackman Game of Soldiers ii. iii. 175 The men gave him a standing ovation, whistling and stamping as he stood there grinning and bowing. |
2. a. Of vegetation: That stands erect (in growth); growing (as distinguished from cut, felled or laid low by a storm or the like).
| 1382 Wyclif Hos. viii. 7 A stondynge stalk is not in hem. 1535 Coverdale Judg. xv. 5 And thus he brent y⊇ stoukes and the stondinge corne. 1625 Massinger New Way ii. i, I'le make my men breake ope his fences, Ride o're his standing corne. 1666 Dryden Ann. Mirab. cxii, When rolling Thunders roar, And sheets of Lightning blast the standing Field. 1707 Mortimer Husb. 427, I suppose I shall be asked how, in a standing Wood, I could carry the Path so streight. 1807 P. Gass Jrnl. 131 The hills come close in upon the banks of it, covered thick with standing timber and fallen trees. 1866 Rogers Agric. & Prices I. ii. 19 It was found advantageous to sell the standing grass. |
b. (See
quots.)
| 1884 W. Miller Plant-n. 208 Ipomopsis elegans. Standing Cypress. 1891 Century Dict., Standing-cypress, a common biennial garden-flower, Gilia coronopifolia (Ipomopsis elegans), native in the southern United States. |
c. standing crop, a growing crop; now used
spec. in
Ecol. to denote the total quantity of living things in an (
esp. planktonic) ecosystem, or in some component of one.
| 1861 J. Brown Forester (ed. 3) vii. 477 There is great danger of having it [sc. the work] carelessly performed, and very often to the damage of a considerable portion of the standing crop. 1935 P. S. Welch Limnol. ix. 253 A quantitative measure of the production of a lake can be expressed in terms of (1) standing crop—the total amount of plankton present in the water on a selected date—and (2) annual crop. 1946 Ecol. Monogr. XVI. 324/2 The size of the standing crop at any time is the result of the summation of the excess of production over destruction from the beginning of the growth of the population to the moment of observation. 1957 G. E. Hutchinson Treat. Limnol. I. xii. 746 The addition of a large quantity of phosphorus in 1938 undoubtedly led to a considerable increase in the standing crop of plankton. 1979 R. Brewer Princ. Ecol. iv. 129 At any one time each trophic level contains some amount of energy stored as biomass, often referred to as the standing crop. |
3. a. Of an inanimate thing: That stands up, upright, or on end; that is set in a vertical position. Also
occas. standing-up.
| a 1539 Cartul. Abb. de Rievalle (Surtees) 339 Other iij wyndows w{supt} a standyng bar in euery wyndow and iii crosse barres. 1570 Billingsley Euclid xi. xxix. 341 Standing lines are called those fower right lines of euery parallelipipedon which ioyne together the angles of the vpper and nether bases of the same body. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, ii. iv. 274 What is like thee? You Tailors yard,..you vile standing tucke. 1611 Rowlands Knave of Hearts (1612) B 3, Let vs haue standing Collers, in the fashion. 1846 Fairholt Costume (1885) II. 157 The fall..not being so readily put out of order as the large standing-lace ruff, inasmuch as it reposed on the shoulders. 1853 Surtees Sponge's Sp. Tour (1893) 9 His waistcoats..were..made with good honest standing-up stiff collars. |
† b. standing strake.
Naut. (See
quot. 1644.)
| a 1618 Raleigh Royal Navy 12 We are forced to lye at trye with our maine Course and Missen, which with a deep keel and standing streake she will performe. 1644 H. Manwayring Seamans Dict. 102 Some ships are built, with a standing strake, or two, that is, when there is the whole bredth of a planck or two, rising from the keele, before they come to the floare timbers. |
c. standing pillars: the door posts of a carriage.
| 1837 W. B. Adams Carriages 88 In the central portion of the bottom sides are framed the door posts, called ‘standing pillars’. 1912 H. J. Butler Motor Bodies 14 The toe of the front standing pillar. |
d. Remaining erect; not fallen or overthrown.
† Also, Already erected.
| a 1700 Evelyn Diary 24 May 1695, We made a report of the state of Greenwich House, and how the standing part might be made serviceable at present for {pstlg}6,000 and what ground would be requisite for the whole design. 1823 Scott Quentin D. v, [All] were killed in defending the castle; and there is not a burning hearth or a standing stone in all Glen-houlakin. 1892 P. Lindley Tourist-Guide to Continent (new ed.) 36 Broken flights of steps ascend..into yet standing fragments of the keep. |
e. standing iron, a metal spike on the collar of a sledge dog, to which a ribbon or similar decoration may be attached.
Canad.| 1934 P. H. Godsell Arctic Trader 39 Bells jangled as the dogs proudly tossed their massive heads and shook their beribboned standing-irons in the gusty breeze. 1939 Beaver Sept. 23 Fox tails and coloured ribbons decorated the leather collars and standing-irons. 1959 J. W. Godsell I was no Lady iv. 64 The fluttering rainbows of ribbons on the standing-irons of the harness. |
4. a. Having a foot or feet, a base, or a stem and base upon which to stand,
esp. in
standing bowl,
standing cup,
standing nut (see
nut n.1 2),
standing piece (of plate).
Obs. exc. Hist.| 1420 in E.E. Wills (1882) 46 A stondyng cuppe of seluer y-clepyd a chales cuppe. 1424 Ibid. 57 Also I wull þat Anneys my doughter haue þe standing pece þat was my faders, keuered. 1459 Paston Lett. I. 470 Item, ij. stondyng candilstikkes. Ibid. 486 Item, ij. staundyng aundyris. 1594 Greene & Lodge Looking Gl. (1598) D 3 b, Fetch me that sweet wine,..Powre it into a standing bowle of gold. 1601 Holland Pliny xxxiii. xii. II. 483 A broad goblet or standing peece there was of his making. 1608 Shakes. Per. ii. iii. 65 Say wee drinke this standing boule of wine to him. 1820 Scott Monast. xxxiv, There was neither mazer⁓dish nor standing-cup upon the little table. 1843 Pugin Apol. Rev. Chr. Arch. 81 b, On the step, two high standing candlesticks. Ibid. A standing altar cross. 1871 A. Nesbitt Catal. Slade Coll. Glass 70 Blue Standing Cup. |
b. standing salt: in medieval and later times, a large, often ornate, salt-cellar placed in the middle of a dining-table.
Cf. salt n.1 7 a, b.
Hist.| 1878 W. J. Cripps Old Eng. Plate x. 255 A cylindrical standing salt, of the year 1554. 1931 E. Wenham Domestic Silver v. 42 The imposing standing-salts.., from the Middle Ages to the third quarter of the seventeenth century, were the symbols of social distinction. 1956 G. Taylor Silver ii. 42 The most important and often the most elaborate piece of table plate during the Middle Ages was the standing salt. 1972 Times 28 Nov. 24/1 (Advt.), An Elizabeth I silver-gilt standing-salt. |
5. a. Of a piece of furniture: That rests upon its base when set up for use (as distinguished from ‘hanging’ or ‘leaning’).
standing ladder = step-ladder.
| 1485 Rec. St. Mary at Hill 29 A grete, new, standyng almerye with iij levys. 1503 Maldon (Essex) Court Rolls (Bundle 62, no. 7), 1 standyng cuppord. 1527 in Archæologia XXXVI. 223 Item too standyng deskes, too reide lessons off. 1726 Swift Gulliver ii. vii, A kind of wooden machine,..formed like a standing ladder. 1806–7 J. Beresford Miseries Hum. Life (1826) xx. ii, A standing screen which perpetually belies its name. 1834 Marryat P. Simple lii, I miss my regular watch very much..and I don't much fancy a standing bed-place... Nothing like a hammock, after all. |
† b. standing bed (or
standing bedstead): a high bedstead, as distinguished from a truckle-bed.
Obs.| 1485 Rec. St. Mary at Hill 28 In the Cheffe Chaumbre a standyng bed, made with estrychborde. 1588 Lanc. Wills (1857) II. 75 The great standinge bedd w{supt}{suph} the wheele bedd under yt in the greate chamber. 1598 Shakes. Merry W. iv. v. 7. 1624 in Archæologia XLVIII. 138 In the childrens chamber, a standing and a trundle bedsteed. |
6. Naval Arch. Of a bevel or bevelling: Forming an angle greater than a right angle; obtuse.
| 1754 M. Murray Shipbuilding in Falconer Dict. Marine (1780) s.v. Bevelling, But if the timber is not hewed square..[and] if a square be applied to it, there will be wood wanting either at the upper or lower side... When the wood is deficient at the under-side, it is called under-bevelling; and when it is deficient in the upper side, it is called standing-bevelling. 1874 Thearle Naval Arch. i. iv. §44. 53 Their bevellings are always standing, or greater than a right angle. |
II. That remains at rest or in a fixed position.
7. a. Of water, a piece of water: Still, not ebbing or flowing, stagnant; also
rarely of air.
| 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xiv. liv. (1495) 487 In dyches is..bothe rennynge and stondynge water. c 1400 Secreta Secret., Gov. Lordsh. 79 Þay ar vnhelfull, as þes stondyng waters. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 285/2 Lake, or stondynge watur, lacus. 1586 Marlowe 1st Pt. Tamburl. v. ii, Noisome parbreak of the Stygian snakes, which fills the nooks of hell with standing air. 1596 Shakes. Merch. V. i. i. 89 There are a sort of men, whose visages Do creame and mantle like a standing pond. 1681 Dryden Abs. & Achit. i. 137 The standing Lake soon floats into a Floud. 1787 Best Angling (ed. 2) 5 But eels never breed in standing waters that are without springs. 1831 Brewster Optics iv. 33 If we suppose the surface BB{p} to be that of standing water, placed horizontally. |
| fig. 1601 Shakes. Twel. N. i. v. 168 Tis with him in standing water, betweene boy and man. 1874 L. Stephen Hours in Library (1892) II. iii. 71 Coleridge..threw a great stone into the standing pool of contemporary thought. |
b. Mining. (See
quots.)
| 1883 Gresley Gloss. Coal-mining 238 Standing fire, a fire in a mine continuing to smoulder for a long time. Ibid., Standing gas, a body of fire-damp known to exist in a mine, though fenced off. |
† 8. Stiff, rigid.
a. Of a limb or member of the body. Also
rarely of the eyes: Projecting. [? After L.
stantes oculi, Ovid
Fasti vi. 133.]
Obs.| 1340 Ayenb. 216 Ase byeþ þe fole wyfmen þet guoþ mid stondinde nhicke. c 1400 Master of Game (MS. Digby 182) xv, [Good wolf-hounds should have] stondyng eeres and sharpe aboue. 1649 Bp. Reynolds Hosea iv. 79 A hollow and standing eye. |
b. Cookery. Of a stiff consistency (as distinguished from ‘running’).
Obs.| c 1420 Liber Cocorum (1862) 14 But loke þat hit be not to þyn, But stondand. c 1440 Anc. Cookery in Househ. Ord. (1790) 431 Thyck hit with floure of rys, that hit be welle stondynge. |
9. a. Of a thing: At a standstill. Of a machine, tool, or the like: Not in operation.
| 1585 Higins Junius' Nomenclator 337 æquilibrium,..standing weight: euen weight. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iv. 695 Ixion..leans attentive on his standing Wheel. 1883 Gresley Gloss. Coal-mining 237 Standing, not at work, not going forward, idle. Ibid., Standing bobby, an exploded shot which rips the coal but does not blow the stemming out. |
† b. standing quoin. (See
quots.)
Obs.| 1626 [see canting ppl. a.1 2.] 1696 Phillips s.v. Coin, Standing Coins are Billets or Pipe-Stave to make the Cask fast that they cannot stir nor give way. 1711 Milit. & Sea Dict., s.v. Quoyn, The standing Quoyns, made of Barrel-Boards, about four Fingers broad. |
10. a. That is used in a fixed position.
| 1634 Ir. Act 10 Chas. I, c. 14 §1 Setting of stop-Nets, Still-Nets, or standing-Nets fixed upon posts. 1839 Ure Dict. Arts 749 The pieces of ore are sometimes merely stirred about with a shovel, in a trough filled with water. This is called a standing buddle. 1875 Knight Dict. Mech., Standing-vise. 1895 G. J. Burns Gloss. Archit. etc., Standing waste, an overflow pipe fixed to the bottom of a cistern. |
† b. standing prick, a fixed archery target.
Obs.| 1468, 1541–2 [see rover1 1]. |
11. a. That remains in one spot; that is not moved or carried from place to place; stationary.
Obs. exc. Mil. in
standing camp.
| 1469 in Househ. Ord. (1790) 98 The estate, rule & governaunce of the seid Prince in his ridinge, beinge departed from his standing housholde. a 1500 in Kingsford Chron. London (1905) 189 They were servid well..and as well seasoned mete as it had been dressed in a stondyng place. 1553–5 Extracts Burgh Rec. Edin. (1871) II. 289 The sowme..debursit be the farmorars of the commoun mylnis..upon the standing grayth thairof. 1590 Sir J. Smythe Disc. Weapons 2 b, The..standing watch (as we were wont to terme it) they now call after the French, or Wallons, Corps du gard. 1598 Stow Surv. 75 Besides the standing watches all in bright harnesse in euery warde..there was also a marching watch, that passed through the principall streetes thereof. 1603 R. Johnson Kingd. & Commw. 161 Townes they plant none, nor other standing buildings, but haue moouing houses. 1609 Holland Amm. Marcell. xxiv. xii. 258 We trusted upon our standing campe. 1642 Docq. Lett. Pat. at Oxf. (1837) 336 The Office of Keeper of his Majesties standinge Wardrobe within the Castle of Windsor. 1684 Wood Life July (O.H.S.) III. 102 Ralph Sheldon..spared not any mony to set up a standing library in his house at Weston. 1896 Baden-Powell Matabele Campaign ix, We got back to our standing camp outside the hills about mid-day. |
† b. standing house,
standing mansion-house: a permanent or fixed dwelling-house;
to keep, (take up one's) standing house, to abstain from journeying.
Obs.| 1586 Harrison England ii. vi. 167/2 The beere that is vsed at noble mens tables in their fixed and standing houses, is commonlie of a yeare old. 1589 Mar-Martine A 2, Abbots were fat..The whoresons lov'de their ease, Yet standing house by them was kept. 1596 Norden Progr. Piety (1847) 161 Having thus far proceeded..we must be forced to take up our standing house, and for a time abide in the earthly mansions of our bodies. c 1645 Howell Lett. i. iv. xviii. (1890) 234 That your Grace would settle a standing Mansion-house and Family, that Suitors may know whither to repair constantly. 1671 E. Chamberlayne Pres. St. Eng. i. xiii. 203 The Yeomen of the Guard... Their Office is to wait upon the King in his standing Houses. |
† c. Taken ‘as it stands’.
Obs.| 1788 Jefferson Writ. (1853) II. 407 He rented a house with standing furniture, such as tables, chairs, presses, &c., and brought all other necessaries. |
d. Printing. Applied to type not distributed after use (see
quots.).
| 1770 Luckombe Hist. Printing 227 Irregular Bodied Letter of the smaller sizes sometimes serves the ends of proprietors of standing and selling Copies. 1875 J. Southward Dict. Typogr. (ed. 2) 129 Standing matter, composed matter remaining undistributed after it has been printed. 1888 Jacobi Printers' Vocab. 131 Formes not distributed after printing are said to be ‘standing’. 1916 Estimating for Printers 24 If a job repeats and the printer has kept it standing without..rent, the job should be estimated as though it were reset, and the advantage of standing type kept by the printer. 1964 F. Bowers Bibliogr. & Textual Crit. i. v. 31 This homogeneity extended to the variants in the standing type..but not to their pages of reset type. |
e. Physics.
standing wave, a wave in which the positions of maximum and minimum oscillation remain stationary;
= stationary wave s.v. stationary a. 1 e.
| 1896 Knowledge 1 June 136/1 Each wave crest maintains its position relative to the stone, and from this comes the term standing wave. 1905 Trans. R. Soc. Edin. XLI. 592 The remarkable analogy between the sound-vibrations of an elastic body and the light-vibrations of a radiating atom is at least suggestive. Is it not, for instance, conceivable that the latter are caused by ‘standing waves’ in the elastic system which constitutes the atom? 1947 A. E. Slater in A. C. Douglas Gliding & Adv. Soaring i. 29 Similar ‘standing waves’ have now been found, and soared in, elsewhere. For instance, in an experimental flight to leeward of the Alps a sailplane has reached 30,000 feet above sea level. 1962 A. Nisbett Technique Sound Studio ii. 46 If there are two parallel screens on opposite sides of the microphone a standing-wave pattern will be set up. 1977 A. Hallam Planet Earth 55/2 Such features, called antidunes or standing waves, are often seen in streams running across beaches at low tide or in gutters during heavy rain. |
12. a. That remains stationary while another part, or other parts, move.
| 1680 Moxon Mech. Exerc. (1703) 219 Then remove the standing point of the Compasses to either of the next Divisions..and in like manner describe another Circle. 1832 Brewster Nat. Magic ii. 27 The rotation should be effected round a standing axis by wheels and pinions. 1832 Instr. & Reg. Cavalry ii. 11 Dressing is to the ‘wheeling’ flank, and distance of files is preserved from the ‘standing’ flank. 1881 Greener Gun 266 Which process brings the breech ends of barrels nearer to the face of the standing-breech. |
b. Naut. Chiefly in special collocations, as
standing rigging, the fixed part of a vessel's rigging which serves as a support for the masts and is not hauled upon, as distinguished from the running rigging;
standing ropes pl., the ropes composing the standing rigging; so also in the names of various ropes and appliances, as
standing backstay,
standing block,
standing bowsprit, etc.;
standing part (of a rope, sheet, etc.), that end of a thing which is made fast as distinguished from the end, hauled upon.
| a 1625 Nomenclator Navalis (Harl. MS. 2301), Standing roapes. 1642 H. Bond Boatswain's Art 3, 2 Lanniards of the Spritsaile standing Lifts. 1644 H. Manwayring Seamans Dict. s.v., The standing parts are those parts of running roapes (or rather that end of a running roape) which is made fast to any part of the ship, to distinguish it from the other part, whereon we use to hale. Ibid., Standing roapes, are counted all those roapes..which are not used to be removed, or to run in any blocks. 1745 Observ. Conc. Navy 64 Every Ship should have her standing Masts constantly in and rigg'd, with her Booms and Stores aboard, sufficient to compleat her other Rigging. 1748 Anson's Voy. i. v. 56 The other ships of the squadron fixed new standing rigging. 1791 Smeaton Edystone L. (1793) §143 We fixed the standing block to the stern timbers of our vessel,..bringing the chain along the deck to the moveable purchase block. 1846 A. Young Naut. Dict. 25 Ropes extended from the..mast heads, to the after part of each channel for the support of these masts. They are distinguished by the name of Standing-Backstays. Ibid. 173 A large sail extended on the jib⁓stay to the extremity of..the jib-boom... It gets the name of the standing-jib, in contradistinction to the flying-jib. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Standing Bowsprit, one that is fixed permanently in its place, not the running-in bowsprit of a cutter. 1874 Bedford Sailor's Pocket Bk. vi. (1875) 214 Sling a dipping lug 1/3 from the foremost yard⁓arm; standing lug 1/4. |
III. That stands or continues.
13. a. Continuing without diminution or change; constant, permanent. Of colours: Permanent, unfading.
| c 1375 Sc. Leg. Saints i. (Peter) 22 Peter of ‘petra’ may be tane..for men may a stane neuir bow;..and þis petir, a-beove þe lafe, a stannand luf to criste can hafe. 1632 Lithgow Trav. vi. 292 Pitching our Tents beside a source or standing Well. 1646 W. Jenkyn Remora 16 A transient thought, becomes not a standing and a permanent mercy. 1716 Addison Free-holder No. 22 ¶2 The Landlord.. worked up his complexion to a standing crimson by his zeal for the prosperity of the church. 1791 Hamilton Berthollet's Dyeing I. i. ii. iv. 200 This ground being a standing dye is not removed by the proof. 1831 Carlyle Sart. Res. i. iii, His age, which was of that standing middle sort you could only guess at. 1900 R. Guthrie Kitty Fagan 183 Broon an' black, good stan'in' colours! |
† b. Math. = constant a. 5.
Obs.| 1743 W. Emerson Fluxions 4 The first Letters of the Alphabet, a, b, c, &c. are..put for standing Quantities; and the last, x, y, z, &c. for variable or flowing Quantities. |
† c. Of a work of art or literature: Enduring, ‘standard’.
Obs.| 1698 W. Wotton in Evelyn's Mem. (1857) III. 372, I had almost forgotten to thank you for your honourable mention of my poor performances in so standing a work. 1710 Shaftesbury Charac. (1737) I. iv. iii. 144 The standing Pieces of good Artists must be form'd after a more uniform way. |
† d. standing measure: a standard of measurement.
Obs.| 1668 Dryden Ess. Dram. Poesie 8 It was necessary, before they proceeded further, to take a standing measure of their Controversie. 1691 Locke Lowering of Interest Wks. 1714 II. 20 The value of any thing, compar'd with its self, or with a standing Measure. Ibid. 23 Supposing Wheat a standing Measure, that is, that there is constantly the same Quantity of it in Proportion to its vent. |
14. a. Of employment, income, wages, prices, etc.: Fixed, settled, not casual, fluctuating, or occasional.
| 1473 Rental Bk. Cupar-Angus (1879) I. 190 He payand..ȝerly to ws of standand male xlb of vsuale mone. a 1530 J. Heywood Play Weather (1533) D ij b, I know not what god geueth in standynges fees [? read with ed. 1565 standyng fees] But the deuyls seruauntes haue casweltees A hundred tymes mo then goddes seruauntes haue. 1549 Thomas Hist. Italie 5 Many of theim [sc. artificers] liue as well as they that haue standyng liuinges. 1622 Pursuit Hist. Lazarillo (1672) T 3, To hear her..threaten with such arrogancy, a man would have thought she had given me..thirty duckets a year standing wages. 1670 R. Montagu in Buccleuch MSS. (Hist. MSS. Comm.) I. 468 My standing allowance from Michaelmas last till Christmas. 1730 Lett. to Sir W. Strickland rel. Coal Trade 19 Keeping a Fleet in standing Pay. 1901 Macm. Mag. Apr. 455/1 There are some booksellers who have no standing-price for their wares, but rate them according to what they think each customer will give. |
b. of attributes.
| 1640 Bp. Reynolds Passions ii. Wks. (1658) 899 The Bias of Mens desires are often turned, by reason of some sudden or emergent Occurrences, contrary to the standing temper and complexion of the body. 1697 Collier Ess. Mor. Subj. ii. (1709) 125 'Tis true, a Man cannot command the standing Features and Complexion; but the Diversities of Passion are under Disposal. 1835 Sterling in Carlyle Life ii. ii. (1872) 98 Under this head, of language, may be mentioned..two standing characteristics of the Professor's style. |
15. a. That continues in existence or operation that continues to be (what the noun specifies); that does not pass away.
standing order, (
a) (
Parliament), see
quot. 1844; (
b) (
Mil.), see
quot. 1802; (
c) a written directive to a banker instructing that a regular payment be made from an account,
usu. to another party; similarly,
transf. in
Commerce;
standing rule (
Mil.)
= standing order (b).
| 1662 Stillingfl. Orig. Sacræ ii. v. §3 He layes this down as a standing rule among them. 1686 A. Horneck Crucif. Jesus xiv. 326 The very Heathens..made it a standing maxim. That the Gods sold all their gifts for labour and industry. 1682 Shadwell Medal John Bayes 3 Thou never mak'st, but art a standing Jest. 1710 Prideaux Orig. Tithes ii. 42 The Decisions of Judges..are made the standing Rules. 1737 Gentl. Mag. VII. 583 The standing Order of the House, made Jan. 16, 1735, for restraining the Counsel at the Bar of that House..from offering Evidence. 1754 Sherlock Disc. (1759) I. x. 275 These are the standing Proofs of the Being and Goodness of God. 1780 Bentham Princ. Legisl. xix. §15 It is a standing topic of complaint. 1781 Cowper Expost. 110 Then God's own image on the soul impress'd Becomes a mock'ry, and a standing jest. 1802 C. James Milit. Dict. s.v. March F ff 3/1 It is a standing rule in column, that every regiment should march with the same front, that the regiment does which precedes it. Ibid. s.v. Order, Standing Orders, certain general rules and instructions which are to be invariably followed, and are not subject to the temporary intervention of rank. 1844 May Parlt. ii. vii. 131 Both houses have agreed, at various times, to standing orders, for the permanent guidance and order of their proceedings; which, if not vacated or rescinded, endure from one Parliament to another, and are of equal force in all. 1859 Mill Liberty ii. 40 The beliefs..have no safeguard to rest on, but a standing invitation to the whole world to prove them unfounded. 1864 C. Knight Passages Work. Life I. i. 109 This is the standing joke nightly repeated. 1869 Tyndall in Fortn. Rev. Feb. 237 The two great standing enigmas of meteorology—the colour of the sky, and the polarization of its light. 1874 L. Stephen Hours in Library (1892) II. ii. 39 Burke was..a standing refutation of the theory. 1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 42/1 By referring to what is still the standing authority upon the question. 1913 Bagshaw & Hannaford Pract. Banking ix. 144 Executing Standing Orders... A customer may instruct his banker to pay a certain sum at a stated time, and the main instances of this are in the payment of annual subscriptions to clubs. 1937 A. F. Fergus Pract. Branch Banking xv. 207 All those regular periodical payments, such as rent, insurance premiums, club subscriptions..which are made by the Branch on the instructions of customers, come under the general description of ‘Standing Orders’. 1962 D. Francis Dead Cert xii. 134 I'll place a standing order with Interflora, for lilies. 1972 G. Lyall Blame Dead ix. 67 The standing orders were easy enough: they'd be payments to the life insurance companies and probably the rent on that flat. |
† b. standing lottery, one that remains open and undrawn for a specified long period.
Obs.| 1615 Capt. Smith Virginia iv. 117 We manifested our intents, to haue drawn out the great standing Lottery long before this. 1622 Malynes Anc. Law-Merch. 207 There are two manner of Lotaries, namely, Standing Lotaries, and Running Lotaries; the first limitted for a continuance of time to bee drawne at the end thereof, without intermission by day and night; the latter to bee drawne daily. |
† c. Of a building: Permanent, not temporary.
| 1624 Issues Exchequer Jas. I. (1836) 294 For making divers new ridings within his Majesty's park at Theobalds,..making of standing bridges, levelling of ground [etc.]. |
16. Habitually used; stock.
standing dish: see
dish n. 2 b.
† Of clothing or trappings: Ordinarily worn, ‘everyday’.
| 1492 in Bury Wills (Camden) 75 My best stondyng gowne furred w{supt} bever. 1533 Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scot. VI. 178 To be standing housouris to the grete hors, xviij elnis braid gray. 1541 Ibid. VIII. 28 Item,..To be standing howsis to the Kingis grace hors, lxxxiiij elnis thre quarteris braid gray. 1599 B. Jonson Ev. Man out of Hum. ii. vi, He hath shift of names, sir: some call him Apple-John, some signior Whiffe; marry, his maine standing name is Cavalier Shift. 1667 O. Heywood Heart-Treas. i. 7 A plain allusion to an housekeepers old store, which makes a daily standing dish. 1705 Addison Italy, Venice 101 There are Four Standing Characters that enter into every Piece that comes on the Stage, the Doctor, Harlequin, Pantalone and Coviello. 1758 Johnson Idler No. 12 ¶11 He had a standing elegy and epithalamium, of which only the first and last leaves were varied. 1776 R. Twiss Tour Irel. 37 Potatoes, which form a standing dish at every meal. 1861 T. A. Trollope La Beata II. xv. 148 He was fain to plead the standing excuse of a bad headache. 1868 Gladstone Juv. Mundi ii. (1870) 31 The standing appellations of the army in the Iliad are these three, Danaoi, Argeioi, and Achaioi. 1868 Freeman Norm. Conq. (1876) II. App. 641 ‘Feri’ seems to be a standing epithet for all Saxons. |
17. a. Permanently and authoritatively fixed or set up; stated, established, organized, regular.
| 1549 Coverdale, etc. Erasm. Par. Gal. v. 3–4 Whoso is content to receyue circumcision, muste lykewise therwith receyue sacrifices..standing fasting dayes, with suche other lyke. 1563 Homilies II. Place & Time of Prayer i. N nn j, The godly Christian people..began to chose them a standyng day in the weke, to come together in. 1578 in Househ. Ord. (1790) 250 Thirty standing posts appointed 18. 5. 0. 1609 in Rep. Secret Comm. Post Office App. (1844) 42 In..Kent, where the stages of our standing posts, are now established and appointed. 1649 Milton Eikon. vi. 58 Which not onely the general Maxims of Policy gainsay, but eev'n our own standing Laws. a 1700 Evelyn Diary 23 Apr. 1661, [There followed, at the Coronation] Masters of standing offices being no Councellors. 1790 Burke Fr. Rev. 269 This standing, unalterable, fundamental government would make..that territory truly and properly an whole. 1841 Myers Cath. Th. iv. §29. 318 The Schools of the Prophets, and a standing Prophetic Order,..were formally established by Samuel. 1846 Grote Greece (1862) II. xx. 493 A standing caravan commerce with Phenicia. |
b. Of a legislative, administrative, or other body: Permanently constituted;
esp. in
standing committee.
| 1625 Bacon Ess., Counsel (Arb.) 329, I commend also standing Commissions; As for Trade; for Treasure. a 1636 H. Elsynge Expedicio Billarum Antiquitus (1954) 23 Even this doth prove that there was one Standing Committee for all Bills in parlement. 1656 H. Scobell Memorials iii. 9 In Parliament there have usually been Five Standing Committees appointed in the beginning of the Parliament, and remaining during all the Session. a 1700 Evelyn Diary 10 Mar. 1671, To London about passing my patent as one of the standing Council for Plantations. 1735 Bolingbroke Parties 37 A standing Parliament, or the same Parliament long continued, changes the very Nature of the Constitution. 1739 Butler Serm. Wks. 1874 II. 217 A common form of Christian worship..with a standing ministry of instruction and discipline. 1810 Bentham Packing (1821) 155 In packing into a standing Board a set of dependent Commissioners. 1837 Carlyle Fr. Rev. III. iii. v, Five Judges; a standing Jury..: they are subject to no Appeal. 1868 Erskine May Law of Parl. (ed. 6) xiv. 379 There is further an exceptional class of committees, called standing committees. The only committee properly so termed is one whose appointment, being by standing order, is permanent, the nomination only being renewed from session to session. Such is the committee of public accounts, under a standing order of the 3rd April 1862. 1906 H. Montgomery & Cambray Dict. Polit. Phr. 72 Standing or Grand Committees [of the House of Commons]. Two in number were set up in 1883. One, the Standing Committee on Law,..The other, the Standing Committee on Trade. 1921 Legislative Assembly Deb. (Delhi) 1 Mar. 418 A Standing Finance Committee of this Assembly has been appointed. It is not proposed—at present at any rate—to appoint any other Standing Committee of the Legislature. 1967 J. D. Lees Committee System U.S. Congr. ii. 5 Standing committees..are permanent committees that continue from Congress to Congress... They are quite different from Standing Committees of the House of Commons which are not specialised and whose main purpose is to save time which would otherwise be spent by the House sitting as Committee of the Whole. 1978 Nagel's Encycl.-Guide: China 292 Out of session, the National People's Congress appoints a standing Committee. Theoretically at least, this committee (made up of a Chairman, 13 Vice-chairmen, 1 Secretary-general and 35 ordinary members) is all-powerful. |
c. Of troops, etc.: Maintained on a permanent footing;
esp. in
standing army: see
army 3 b;
standing patrol.
| 1603 Knolles Hist. Turks (1638) 235 He kept alwaies a standing army of forty thousand horse, and threescore thousand foot. 1655 Clarke Papers (Camden) III. 24 Commissions for raiseing of horse and foote, which are to bee in the nature of a standing Militia. 1673 Temple Observ. United Prov. i. 22 The States first refused to raise any more moneys either for the Spaniards pay, or their own standing-Troops. a 1700 Evelyn Diary 9 Nov. 1685, The King in his speech required the continuance of a standing force instead of a militia. 1732 Swift Beast's Confess. (1738) 17 'Twas known..That, Standing Troops were his Aversion. 1734 Pope Sat. ii. ii. 154 My Life's amusements have been just the same, Before, and after, Standing Armies came. 1838 Thirlwall Greece xxxviii. V. 55 He kept a standing army of 6000 mercenaries in his pay. 1867 Freeman Norm. Conq. (1876) I. vi. 512 The standing navy of England consisted of sixteen ships. 1923 Kipling Irish Guards in Gt. War I. 25 The Germans pushed a patrol through the wood and our standing-patrol went out and discovered one German under-officer..dead. 1941 P. Richey Fighter Pilot 35 Germans..maintained a standing patrol on their own side, only crossing over to our side occasionally, and always very high. 1959 P. Fleming Siege at Peking xiii. 202 General Lineivitch..sent forward an advance-guard of one battalion and half a battery..to act as what used to be called a standing patrol. |
d. Of an official: Holding permanent office.
| 1656 Burton's Diary (1828) I. 159 That there should be a standing treasurer. 1658 R. Parr Judges Charge 31 Sirs, you that are the standing Magistrates of the County, will it be for your honour (think you) to give license to such [Tipling-houses]? 1659 Wood Life 11 Feb. (O.H.S.) I. 268 Nath. Crew..brought..a petition, to present to the parliament against standing Visitors in the university. 1809 Lond. Chron. 15 July 50/3 An opinion which the Court of Directors had taken upon the subject from the Attorney and Solicitor General, and their standing Counsel, Mr. Adam. 1867 Smyth Sailor's Word-bk., Standing Warrants, those officers who remain with a ship in ordinary, or on the stocks, as the gunner, carpenter, boatswain, and cook, and till 1814 the purser. 1885 Law Rep. 15 Q.B.D. 374 A solicitor is not a standing agent for one who has been or may be his client, to receive [etc.]. |
† e. U.S. (See
quot. 1911).
Obs.| 1861 Contrib. Eccl. Hist. Connecticut 253 There arose a class of churches..which though purely Congregational in their principles and practices were not in fellowship with the churches of ‘the standing order’. 1911 Webster, Standing order,..the denomination established by law;— a term formerly used in Connecticut of the Congregational Church, the State church until 1818. |
† IV. 18. predicatively. Consistent
with.
Obs.| 1511–2 Act 3 Hen. VIII, c. 23 §5 It is not convenient nor standing with good..ordre that [etc.]. 1542 Udall Erasm. Apoph. 77 The oratours..wer buisie enough to speake thynges standyng with right & justice. Ibid. 288 b, Thy dooynges o Cato dooen more nere approche vnto the spirite of prophecie, but myne are muche better standyng with frendeship. 1553 T. Wilson Rhet. (1909) 34 But such stubburnesse..is not standing with Iustice. |
19. Naut. all standing: see
stand v. 24.
Hence
† ˈstandingly adv., as a regular thing.
| a 1641 Bp. R. Montagu Acts & Mon. (1642) 460 They used to pray, at the third, the sixth, the ninth houre,..standingly, besides other times and houres occasionally. |
▸
standing O n. (also
standing O.)
orig. and chiefly
N. Amer. = standing ovation at 1f.
| 1979 Washington Post 2 Apr. b1/1 The crowd jumped so eagerly to its feet for the standard *standing O that Olivier..gestured for everybody to sit down. 2001 K. Izzo & C. Marsh Fabulous Girl's Guide to Decorum (2002) 100 It is wise to reserve the standing O for those performances that you felt were stellar. |