1. To be at rest in an erect position; to be fixed in an upright or firm position; as: (a) To be supported on the feet, in an erect or nearly erect position; — opposed to lie, sit, kneel, etc. "I pray you all, stand up!" Shak. (b) To continue upright in a certain locality, as a tree fixed by the roots, or a building resting on its foundation. It stands as it were to the ground yglued. Chaucer. The ruined wall Stands when its wind worn battlements are gone. Byron.
2. To occupy or hold a place; to have a situation; to be situated or located; as, Paris stands on the Seine. Wite ye not where there stands a little town Chaucer.
3. To cease from progress; not to proceed; to stop; to pause; to halt; to remain stationary. I charge thee, stand, And tell thy name. Dryden. The star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. Matt. ii. 9.
4. To remain without ruin or injury; to hold good against tendencies to impair or injure; to be permanent; to endure; to last; hence, to find endurance, strength, or resources. My mind on its own center stands unmoved. Dryden.
5. To maintain one's ground; to be acquitted; not to fail or yield; to be safe. Readers by whose judgment I would stand or fall. Spectator.
6. To maintain an invincible or permanent attitude; to be fixed, steady, or firm; to take a position in resistance or opposition. "The standing pattern of their imitation." South. The king granted the Jews . . . to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life. Esther viii. 11.
7. To adhere to fixed principles; to maintain moral rectitude; to keep from falling into error or vice. We must labor so as to stand with godliness, according to his appointment. Latimer.
8. To have or maintain a position, order, or rank; to be in a particular relation; as, Christian charity, or love, stands first in the rank of gifts.
9. To be in some particular state; to have essence or being; to be; to consist. "Sacrifices . . . which stood only in meats and drinks." Heb. ix. 10. Accomplish what your signs foreshow; I stand resigned, and am prepared to go. Dryden. Thou seest how it stands with me, and that I may not tarry. Sir W. Scott.
10. To be consistent; to agree; to accord. Doubt me not; by heaven, I will do nothing But what may stand with honor. Massinger.