Skip to main content
to stand up

to stand up

27 1.0
To put something so it is straight and not lying down
  • phrasal verb
  • /stænd ʌp/
translation icon : poner en posición vertical
  • Like if I put, if I stand this up, oh, I can even balance it.

How do you get that to stand up and stay there?

Examples

  • Do I flatten it or find a way to make the model stand up on the uneven surface?

    Blog text (25)
  • How do you get that to stand up and stay there?

  • And if you stood it up just like this, you could stand it up on a stake off the ground.

  • I stuffed the onesie so it would stand up on its own.

    Blog text (20)
  • Camping lamplights are convenient as they can stand up by themselves and shed a large circle of light.

    Blog text (3)
  • Trevor stands up and looks around the mazelike structure of cubicles as far as he can see.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • He carefully adjusted the leaning tower to stand up straight against the wall.

  • To make it easier to paint, she decided to stand up the canvas on an easel.

  • He wanted the trophy to stand up proudly on the mantlepiece for everyone to see.

Synonyms

to stand
vsto stand up
1.0

To be or put something in an upright position

focuses only on putting something into a vertical position, not being or holding place
to upright
vsto stand up
1 3.8

To make something stand up again after it falls

is more general and applies to making items vertical in any situation
to place upright
vsto stand up
3.1

To put something so it stands up instead of lying down

is the same meaning but is a shorter common phrase

Antonyms

68 2.6

Make something fall by hitting or bumping it

How Upright

erect
17 4.0
to stand up
27 1.0
to straighten
114 2.5
to prop up
54 3.6

Surface Forms

stand up infinitive
stood up past
stood up past participle
standing up present participle
stands up third person singular

Morphology

stand + up

There is a clear link between 'stand' (to endure or resist) and the MWE meaning, while the particle 'up' functions as an intensifier that yields a confrontational sense; however the precise sense 'confront/refuse to back down' is not entirely predictable from the parts for an unexposed B1 learner. This pattern is partially compositional but relies on phrasal-verb semantics that vary cross-linguistically, so prior exposure usually helps.

Etymology

Stand up for something or someone can come from the idea of making an object stand on its end; you set it so it will stand and point up. That's why it also means 'to put something in an upright position'.