Meaning of “stand by” in the English Dictionary

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"stand by" in English

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stand by

— phrasal verb with stand uk ​ /stænd/ us ​ /stænd/ verb stood, stood

(Definition of “stand by” from the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

"stand by" in American English

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stand by

— phrasal verb with stand us ​ /stænd/ verb past tense and past participle stood /stʊd/

(LET HAPPEN)

› to let something happen or to be unable to prevent something:

How could anyone simply stand by while the man was robbed?
We stood by helplessly while the fire destroyed our barn.

stand by

— phrasal verb with stand us ​ /stænd/ verb past tense and past participle stood /stʊd/

(BE PREPARED)

› to be prepared for something:

The general ordered his troops to stand by for a possible attack.

(Definition of “stand by” from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

"stand by " in Business English

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stand by

— phrasal verb with stand uk ​ /stænd/ us ​ verb stood, stood

› [ I ] to be ready to do something:

The Central Bank was standing by, ready to intervene to prevent a further slide against the dollar.

› [ T ] to show that you still believe or support something:

We stand by our view that rates may need to rise to 5% next year.
The Government lost a lot of voters because it failed to stand by its election promises.

(Definition of “stand by ” from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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