stand-in

1 of 2

noun

1
: someone employed to occupy an actor's place while lights and camera are readied
2

stand in

2 of 2

verb

stood in; standing in; stands in

intransitive verb

: to act as a stand-in
Phrases
stand in with
: to be in a specially favored position with

Examples of stand-in in a Sentence

Noun hired him at the last minute as a stand-in for the person who quit Verb she will be standing in for the regular teacher for a week
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The book follows a character named Elise, a stand-in for Grange, during her political awakening in a high-school philosophy class and her subsequent involvement in the civil unrest of the nineteen-sixties, before and after the protests that took place across France in May of 1968. Dominique Grange, The New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2024 Daniel Craig is Burroughs' stand-in here—his character’s name is Bill Lee, a version of the pen name Burroughs himself used at one time—and his complex, mercurial performance is the key to the movie. Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 4 Sep. 2024
Verb
Whatever measures Bell took to evade what was standing in his way also put him on an altogether different path from the one that led to his brief but brilliant jazz career. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2024 Mabel desperately wants to serve that role to her husband Nick (Peter Falk), but has anxieties, alcohol abuse and other mental health obstacles standing in the way. Peter Debruge, Variety, 15 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for stand-in 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stand-in.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1929, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1904, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of stand-in was in 1904

Dictionary Entries Near stand-in

Cite this Entry

“Stand-in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stand-in. Accessed 12 Sep. 2024.

Kids Definition

stand-in

1 of 2 noun
ˈstan-ˌdin
1
: someone employed to occupy an actor's place while lights and camera are readied
2

stand in

2 of 2 verb
(ˈ)stan-ˈdin
: to act as a stand-in
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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