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Glite Dictionary
to stand the sight of

to stand the sight of

6 6.5
You feel upset or faint when you see something you dislike
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : soportar
  • I can't stand the sight of blood.
  • stand the sight of blood

Examples

Synonyms

to can't stand
vsto stand the sight of
516 3.2

Strongly dislike and be unable to bear something or someone

is limited to being unable to tolerate seeing something
to can’t bear
vsto stand the sight of
59 3.7

Cannot stand something because it is too unpleasant or upsetting

applies specifically to being unable to tolerate seeing something
to loathe
vsto stand the sight of
58 5.3

To dislike someone or something very strongly

focuses on disliking or inability to tolerate seeing something rather than general disgust
to abhor
vsto stand the sight of
26 7.8

To hate something very much

is about disliking or not tolerating seeing something without necessarily hating it
to hold in contempt
vsto stand the sight of
23 7.8

To feel strong dislike and no respect for someone or something

is about refusing or being unable to tolerate seeing something rather than moral disrespect

Antonyms

to tolerate
290 3.5

Endure something unpleasant without complaining

How Tolerant

to enjoy
∞ 1.0
to appreciate
∞ 3.2
to tolerate
290 3.5
to stand the sight of
  • Informal
6 6.5

Surface Forms

stand the sight of infinitive
stood the sight of past
stood the sight of past participle
standing the sight of present participle
stands the sight of third person singular

Morphology

stand + the + sight + of

The meaning is directly compositional: 'stand' = tolerate/endure and 'the sight of' = the act of seeing something, so together they yield 'be unable to tolerate seeing X'. This pattern is common cross-linguistically and follows ordinary English composition, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents can infer the meaning.

Etymology

Stand the sight of comes from an old use of stand meaning 'to tolerate' and the simple picture of someone having to stand and look at something unpleasant. So today, saying you cannot stand the sight of something means you cannot tolerate seeing it.