1
as in tie
a situation in which neither participant in a contest, competition, or struggle comes out ahead of the other
after two hours they had played to a 5-5 standoff
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2
as in halt
a point in a struggle where neither side is capable of winning or willing to give in
the standoff continued for three days before the fugitive gave himself up to the authorities
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as in detached
having or showing a lack of friendliness or interest in others
the client's standoff attitude suggested that this was going to be a strictly business relationship
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Examples of standoff in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Erin Couch, The Enquirer, 1 Sep. 2024
The two engaged in a duel with pistols in a western-style standoff taking place during sunrise at Sacré-Couer, which ultimately sees Wick fall after taking a third bullet from Caine.
—Skyler Trepel, Peoplemag, 17 Aug. 2024
The delta between what Aiyuk wants ($30 million or more a year) and what the Niners are willing to pay him (roughly $26 million a year during the parties’ standoff) is enough to fit a first-round and middle-round wide receiver’s rookie deals onto the books.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2024
The singer, a spectator for much of SummerSlam, stepped into the ring during a standoff that pitted Miz and R-Truth against Austin Theory and Grayson Waller.
—Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 4 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for standoff 
Noun
The last time an inmate escaped River City Correctional was in July 2022 when Thomas Cromwell, 27, and Shawn Black, 29, escaped the facility, leading to a SWAT standoff at a Mason hotel.
—Erin Couch, The Enquirer, 1 Sep. 2024
The two engaged in a duel with pistols in a western-style standoff taking place during sunrise at Sacré-Couer, which ultimately sees Wick fall after taking a third bullet from Caine.
—Skyler Trepel, Peoplemag, 17 Aug. 2024
The delta between what Aiyuk wants ($30 million or more a year) and what the Niners are willing to pay him (roughly $26 million a year during the parties’ standoff) is enough to fit a first-round and middle-round wide receiver’s rookie deals onto the books.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2024
The singer, a spectator for much of SummerSlam, stepped into the ring during a standoff that pitted Miz and R-Truth against Austin Theory and Grayson Waller.
—Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 4 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for standoff
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'standoff.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Thesaurus Entries Near standoff
Cite this Entry
“Standoff.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/standoff. Accessed 2 Oct. 2024.
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